NEWPORT NEWS, Va. -- The 15th-ranked Christopher Newport volleyball team capped off a perfect run in the CNU Invitational on Saturday afternoon as the Captains took down Averett, 3-2 (24-26, 19-25, 25-19, 28-26, 15-8), before upending Scranton, 3-0 (25-9, 25-18, 25-22), during a marathon day at the Freeman Center.
 
Capping off her historic weekend, Hannah Miller put together another sensational performance on Saturday. One day after registering her 1000th career kill, the senior All-American unloaded 29 kills while hitting .529. She also registered six blocks during the day and was honored as the Tournament MVP for her efforts.
 
Combined with her performance on Friday, Miller finished the tournament with a team-high 51 kills and a .554 hitting percentage. She also posted 16 blocks, including a pair of solo rejections.
 
Also earning a spot on the All-Tournament team, Riley Garrison and Maddie McCann starred during the invitational as well. Garrison led the squad with 19 blocks during the weekend, including nine on Saturday. Meanwhile, McCann chipped in with 42 kills and 22 digs during the four matches.

With the two victories, Christopher Newport improves to 8-3 on the season. Averett now sits at 8-6, while Scranton is 8-7.
 
After posting a pair of sweeps to kick off the tournament on Friday, the Captains had a tougher time on Saturday. In the opener against Averett, the Cougars pulled out to an 11-9 lead before CNU fought back with a solid mid-set surge. Tylar McGill and Josie Lucernoni smoked aces, while Miller had a block and blast to help flip the script and snatch an 18-14 advantage.
 
Despite the lead, the Captains struggled to put the Cougars away. The visitors came on late, including a three-point streak, which evened the score at 20. Battling hard, Garrison and Miller both punched kills, while Rachel Close made an acrobatic dig to keep another rally alive, but Averett eventually stole the final three battles to snatch a 26-24 lead.
 
With the momentum, AU capitalized and stormed out to a fast lead in the second. Despite a pair of early kills by Miller, the Cougars scratched out a 15-9 edge. Although McGill ripped another ace and McCann landed a pair of daggers, the deficit proved to be insurmountable as the visitors ran away with a 25-19 victory.
 
With their backs planted firmly against the wall, the Captains regrouped entering the third. McCann continued her surge with a pair of quick kills, and Webb added a thunderous shot after hammering home a pass from Katie Crofford on the way to an 8-5 lead. Although Averett retaliated with a five-point streak, Christopher Newport was undaunted.
 
Garrison caught fire in the middle of the frame with two kills and a rejection, while Rachel Blitt also spun a bullet off a block attempt to help earn a 15-11 advantage. After the visitors responded with a run of their own, the Captains put the set away. Webb and Garrison teamed up on back-to-back rejections, which forced a late AU timeout. Following the break, Blitt plastered a back-row defender with a kill before unleashing a missile into the heart of the defense to cap off the frame, 25-19.
 
With their sights focused on evening the match, the Captains got off to another fast start in the fourth. Piper and McCann each clubbed a pair of winners, while Lucernoni collected an ace and added a teardrop kill after flipping a free ball over her head that found open spaces on the way to an 8-3 edge. Later, Blitt and Garrison continued the hot start with two kills each before Miller dropped in four darts, including a beautiful tip that just caught the sideline to snatch a 20-12 advantage.
 
Showing tremendous heart, the Cougars fought back. Using three separate four-point runs, Averett eventually knotted the score at 24. Having worked too hard to keep the match alive, Christopher Newport fired right back. McCann drilled the court with an absolute screamer before Miller tattooed a defender with a rocket that eventually helped lock up the hard-fought 28-26 triumph.
 
Back on even ground, the two squads traded points on the way to a 5-5 draw in the fifth. Needing to make a move, Evelyn Harper showed off her finest Matrix-style maneuver to avoid a scorching serve that just hit out-of-bounds and broke the deadlock. Moments later, Garrison came through with two kills and a block, while Webb slammed an ace to secure a 10-7 lead.
 
With the momentum, the Captains eased towards the victory. McCann destroyed a late block attempt, which forced an AU timeout. Unfazed by the stoppage, Piper added the final nails as she unleashed a kill and teamed with Garrison on a block to wrap up the match with a 15-8 victory.
 
Miller finished the contest with 18 kills, while McCann contributed a double-double with 15 kills and 10 digs. Webb also came through with the first double-double of her career after tallying 38 assists and 10 digs. Garrison also shined for the first-year contingent after totaling 12 kills, seven blocks, and an ace.
 
After the grueling five-set affair, CNU had a mid-day break before returning for a nightcap against Scranton. Hoping for a less contentious battle, the Captains got off to a great start in the opening frame against the Royals. Harper led the way with a pair of aces during an eight-point streak, while McCann and Miller also landed a pair of blows to nail down a speedy 9-3 edge.
 
Following a strong start by the veterans, the freshmen got into the act in the middle of the frame. Blitt crushed three kills, Piper added a pair, and Webb snapped off an ace to push the lead to 19-7. Later, sophomore Kellyn DeChirico registered a kill and solo block before McCann added the final two winners, including a laser that split a pair of back-row defenders, to lock up the first, 25-9.
 
Looking to ride the momentum, Garrison set the tone early in the second. Capitalizing on a nice feed from Webb, the freshman standout rifled a bullet off the face of a defender to get things started. Miller quickly kept things rolling with three kills and a block, while Blitt flashed her skill set with a huge up to keep one rally alive before adding a dart just moments later on the way to a 10-4 lead.
 
Refusing to let the Royals back into the set, the Captains continued to hit them with a relentless assault. Webb turned around and unloaded her second kill of the contest before Miller hammered a slide that pushed the lead to 16-9. Although Scranton eventually pulled back within four, Garrison flashed some muscle as she smoked a rope that flew through two blockers and deflected off a back-row defender to help secure set-point. With little left to prove, Piper added the final punctuation mark after abusing the block along the far pin for the clinching kill, which iced the 25-18 triumph.
 
Things continued to go well for CNU in the third set as Maddie Reynolds opened the frame with a blistering serve that caught the tape and dripped over for an ace. Miller and Mary Kathryn Hall also added kills and joined forces on a block to earn a modest 9-6 lead.
 
Looking to steal back some of the momentum, Scranton managed to turn the tables and used a solid run in the middle of the frame to nail down a 15-12 lead heading into a CNU timeout. Fortunately, the stoppage paid dividends for the hosts as Hall added a tip and kill on back-to-back rallies before Garrison launched an ace during a six-point streak that gave the Captains an 18-15 advantage.
 
Although Scranton eventually evened the score at 22, Christopher Newport pulled away in the end. Blitt smacked a kill off the very tip of a Royal block attempt before Webb took over at the service line and closed out the day with an ace to the back corner that locked up the 25-22 triumph.
 
Miller finished the contest with 11 kills on 17 swings, while Piper had nine on 20. Defensively, Close came through with a match-high 13 digs and was flawless on serve-receive after converting all 10 of her reception attempts. Webb chipped in with 37 assists, eight digs, three kills, and a pair of aces as well.
 
Christopher Newport will be back in action on September 20 when the squad travels to Virginia Wesleyan for a 7 p.m. contest.
 
---CNU---