ST. MARY'S CITY, Md. - Leading top-seeded St. Mary's on the road 50-49 with a little over eight minutes to play, the Christopher Newport University men's basketball team caught fire on their way to an 83-69 road win against the Capital Athletic Conference's regular season champion. For the second consecutive season, the Captains went on the road to upset the top seed in the CAC tournament and will play in the conference championship game Saturday afternoon at Salisbury.
 
Entering Thursday's game, St. Mary's was 9-0 in the O'Brien Athletics and Recreation Center on the year and after CNU took a 39-33 lead to the half, the Seahawks home court advantage came into play. St. Mary's senior guard, Nick LaGuerre matched a career-high with 36 points, 23 in the second half.
 
"It was a great basketball environment here at St. Mary's," said John Krikorian, Head Coach of the Captains. "Our guys embraced the challenge."
 
The first half saw Christopher Newport light up the scoreboard shooting 56% from the floor and connecting on eight of 14 from distance. Freshman Marcus Carter scored CNU's first eight points for an early 8-6 lead. Senior Mike Cherry got the three-point barrage started minutes later when he put the Captains ahead 13-12.
 
Over the next four minutes, St. Mary's used an 8-2 run to take a 20-15 lead a little over 10 minutes into the game. LaGuerre joined with Garrett Snoops and Marsalis Hurley on the mini-run. The leading scorer in the CAC averaging 21.5 points per game, LaGuerre scored 13 first-half points as he helped keep pace with the Captains attack.
 
"Our guys put together their best performance of the year," said Krikorian. Throughout the contest, when St. Mary's challenged the Captains, they answered with clutch shooting and key defensive stops.
 
Sophomore Justin Hampton buried a three-pointer to even the score at 21 while Aaron McFarland and Hunter Wetherell also added threes to re-establish the CNU lead at 29-23 with 4:35 left in the half. The 11-2 run gave the visitors a lead they would not relinquish.
 
In the last home game of his career, LaGuerre took over in the second half. Scoring four of the first seven Seahawks baskets in the second stanza, and would eventually account for more than half of his team's 69 points.
 
LaGuerre's driving basket down the right side of the lane with 9:30 to play brought St. Mary's within one at 48-47. A minute later, LaGuerre's acrobatic finish again made it a one-point margin, 50-49. Cherry answered each time and would not relinquish the lead. Yet another LaGuerre basket with just under seven minutes to play trimmed the Captains lead to one, 52-51.
 
With their season on the line and a hostile crowd cheering on the home standing Seahawks, the Captains seized the opportunity. A pair of Cherry free throws and a Rayshard Brown layup in transition set the table for the most important four minutes of McFarland's young career.
 
"Our team is full of fierce competitors," said Krikorian "and Aaron might be our fiercest."
 
With a 58-54 lead, McFarland caught a pass on the right wing and launched a shot from in front of the Captains bench that went down to extend the lead to seven, the largest of the half with four minutes and change to play. However, it wasn't until LaGuerre answered with a three of his own that it became apparent CNU wasn't willing to see its season come to an end short of the CAC championship game.
 
McFarland connected on another three pointer on the ensuing possession and followed a Cherry layup with his fifth three of the night to build up a 69-59 lead with 1:55 to play. McFarland added a sixth three-point basket moments later when he collected a long rebound and launched a shot from 26 feet. The basket would be his fourth three-pointer in a decisive three-minute stretch and completed his 20-point performance.
 
Over the final 90 seconds, St. Mary's was forced to foul and try to catch up with the Captains. Brown and Cherry would not let them combining to connect on 11 free throws to seal the upset victory.
 
LaGuerre's 36 points led all scorers while McFarland paced the effort for Christopher Newport. The freshman from near Fredericksburg was joined in double-figures by three teammates, Carter (19), Cherry (17) and Brown (12). For the game CNU shot 49% from the floor and connected on 13-29 shots from beyond the arc.
 
In the game, the Captains established a new school record for three-point attempts in a season breaking the previous mark of 680 set by the 2002-03 team.
 
With the win, Christopher Newport advances to the championship game of the Capital Athletic Conference tournament on Saturday at 4:30 p.m. at Salisbury University. The second-seeded Sea Gulls withstood a late Mary Washington run to earn a 59-52 semifinal victory.
 
Christopher Newport improves to 20-7 on the season and will look for their first win of the season against Salisbury in the championship game. CNU dropped a 54-48 decision at the Maggs Center in December and fell at home to the Gulls, 64-57, in overtime.
 
Saturday's game will be broadcast on the CNU/Pepsi Radio Network and Xtra 99.1 FM. Live stats and live video will be available at CNUsports.com.