Live Stats // Live Video

NEWPORT NEWS, Va. -- The 15th-ranked Christopher Newport volleyball team will host the annual CNU Invitational beginning on Friday at the Freeman Center when the Captains welcome Averett and Scranton to town for the two-day tournament.
 
CNU will open up action on Friday with a 4 p.m. bout against Averett and an 8 p.m. contest with Scranton. The following afternoon, the Captains will have rematches against Averett at noon and Scranton at 4 p.m.
 
For those fans unable to make it to the tournament, live stats and a video stream of the action will be available at CNUsports.com. Direct links to both features can be found at the top of this release and on the CNU schedule page.
 
A LOOK AT THE CAPTAINS
 
Christopher Newport, who sits at 4-3 on the year, has featured a solid defensive front row as the team currently ranks 29th in the NCAA with a 2.20 blocks-per-set average. Senior All-American Hannah Miller has led the way and stands 20th in the country with a 1.30 blocks-per-set mark. Meanwhile, Riley Garrison ranks second on the team with 17 total rejections, while Maddie McCann and Katelyn Newsome have double-digit totals as well.
 
On the offensive end, McCann leads the team with a 3.09 kills-per-set average, while Miller has 64 blasts. Katie Piper has also unloaded 50 kills this year, while fellow freshman Hope Webb is averaging a team-best 9.43 assists-per-set.
 
LAST TIME OUT
 
Last weekend, the Captains dropped three straight decisions against nationally-ranked opponents at the Juniata / ASICS Invitational. CNU fell to No. 2 Juniata, 3-1, before getting swept by No. 8 Wittenberg and No. 25 Carnegie Mellon.
 
During the three matches, Miller led Christopher Newport with 30 kills and seven blocks. Garrison also collected six rejections, while Rachel Close led the back row with 41 digs. Katie Crofford also pocketed 3.60 digs-per-set during the tournament.
 
SCOUTING THE OPPOSITION
 
Averett enters the tournament with a 7-3 overall record, including a pristine 4-0 run during their 22nd Annual Cougar Classic earlier in the month. The team is led by senior All-American Hannah Shields, who ranks third in the NCAA with a 5.06 kills-per-set average. She also stands among the top-10 nationally in points, attacks, and total kills. Along with Shields, Keenan Marks is averaging 9.51 assists-per-set, while Brianna Williams leads the team with 18 blocks.
 
Scranton comes to town at 6-5 after splitting four matches during last week's Buttermaker Tournament at Muhlenberg College. The Royals boast highly-productive players on both sides of the ball as the squad ranks fifth in the NCAA with 662 digs and stands among the top-10 in both assists and attacks. On an individual level, Morgan Rentzheimer is sixth in the country with 24 aces this year, while Kristin Kriwan is 18th with a 4.17 kills-per-set average. Meanwhile, on the back row, Danielle Cafiero has collected a team-high 172 digs so far this year.
 
SERIES HISTORY
 
Averett and CNU are longtime rivals after spending decades as league foes in the USA South. In fact, Averett was the last USA South team to defeat the Captains after posting a victory in the 2006 conference tournament. However, Christopher Newport has won the last 17 consecutive meetings between the two programs.
 
Scranton and CNU have only met once with the Captains registering a 3-1 victory in the 2013 CNU Invitational.
 
NEXT UP
 
After this weekend's matches, Christopher Newport will return to action on September 20 with a 7 p.m. battle at Virginia Wesleyan.
 
---CNU---