NEWPORT NEWS, Va.- Christopher Newport struggled shooting the ball Wednesday night, and fell in overtime to Salisbury at the Freeman Center, 64-57. The defeat drops the Captains into a third-place tie with the Sea Gulls in the Capital Athletic Conference standings at 9-4.

CNU trailed for most of the night before rallying in the second half. Salisbury needed a circus shot in the lane from senior Conor Strickland in the final seconds to tie the game at 53-53 and force overtime. The Sea Gulls, now 13-7 overall and 9-4 in the CAC, then out-scored the Captains in the extra period, 11-4, for the triumph.

"They made some big shots, and we didn't," Head Coach John Krikorian said. "I was happy with our intensity and our attitude, but we just weren't able to make enough shots to win the game."

Christopher Newport played most of the game without top scorer Marcus Carter, who was limited to six minutes of playing time due to an injured back muscle. Carter took just two shots, missing both in the first half, and did not see action after halftime. His status is considered day-to-day.

Salisbury led at the half, 30-27, after being up by as many as ten in the opening half. CNU then rallied in the second half thanks to the guard tandem of senior Mike Cherry and sophomore Kevin Regimbal as well as freshman forward Brendon Burrows. Cherry scored six of his game-high 14 points in the second stanza, while Regimbal posted a career-high 13 points with ten in the second half. Regimbal hit his third three-pointer of the evening with 43 seconds left on the second half clock to give the Captains a 53-51 lead, only to have Strickland's shot go down with three seconds left to send the game to the five-minute extra period. Burrows scored all seven of his points in the second half.

In overtime, Salisbury re-claimed the lead by scoring the first two buckets to go up, 58-53. Junior guard Rocky Harris sank a jumper for two and then Strickland knocked down a three, and the Sea Gulls were on their way to the seven-point triumph.

The Captains were plagued by poor shooting all night. CNU made just 22 of 64 total shots (34 percent), eight of 22 from three-point range (36 percent), and five of 14 at the foul stripe (36 percent).

Sophomore Justin Witmer led the Salisbury charge with 17 points, including five three-pointers. Junior Wyatt Smith recorded 16 points, while Harris finished with 11 and Strickland with 10. The win was the second for SU over the Captains this season, as the Sea Gulls posted a 54-48 triumph in Salisbury on December 17th.

Christopher Newport was led by Cherry's 14 and Regimbal's 13 points for the night. The Captains are now 14-6 overall and 9-4 in the CAC. CNU is now 9-2 at home this season.

Cherry moved into 10th place on the all-time CNU scoring list. He is now just one point behind Matt Bryant for ninth all-time.

The Captains will host Wesley at the Freeman Center on Saturday. Tipoff time is set for 4:00 p.m.