ATLANTA, Ga. -- The 21st-ranked Christopher Newport volleyball team bowed out of the NCAA Tournament on Friday evening as the Captains fell to No. 7 Emory, 3-0 (25-16, 25-22, 25-13), during a second-round showdown at the Woodruff Center.
 
Capping off her sophomore campaign, Katie Piper came through with her 18th double-digit kill effort of the year after dropping a team-high 10 blasts on the Eagles. Riley Garrison also clubbed eight kills and posted a .400 hitting percentage. Meanwhile, Katie Crofford shined on the defensive end as the second-year standout registered a team-high nine digs and four blocks to go along with a 20-for-20 effort on serve-receive.
 
Putting the finishing touches on her career, Katelyn Newsome wrapped up her tenure with five kills and three blocks. Fellow senior Tylar McGill also dished out 11 assists against Emory.
 
With the setback, Christopher Newport concludes the 2017 campaign with a 28-4 record. The victory bumps Emory to 29-6 and sends the Eagles into the Regional Championship for a battle with Berry on Saturday evening.
 
After a grueling five-set victory over Thomas More in the opening round on Thursday, the Captains stumbled early against Emory. The hosts stormed out to a commanding 13-4 lead in the first frame before CNU whistled for its second timeout. Following the break, Newsome came through with two kills and a block during the span of four rallies, while Josie Lucernoni jammed home an ace to inch back within four at 14-10. Despite the mid-set push, Christopher Newport could not pull any closer as the Eagles retaliated and locked up a 25-16 triumph.
 
Bouncing back in the second stanza, CNU capitalized on its front-row defense to nail down an early lead. Garrison, Newsome, and Crofford all had a hand in two blocks apiece to secure a 9-7 advantage. Later, Abby Oren dropped in a kill before Piper slammed a pair to keep a small advantage in the middle of the frame. Still trailing at 18-16, Emory called for a timeout and regrouped. Following the break, Garrison landed two darts, while Crofford and Piper each had one, but the Eagles stormed back and stole a 25-22 victory.
 
Keeping things interesting early in the third set, Garrison knocked home two more kills on the way to a 5-5 tie. Megan O'Hara also punched a dart off a feed from McGill, but EU had too much left in the tank. The hosts won 10 of the next 13 rallies to snatch a 15-8 lead following a CNU timeout. Although Garrison and Piper came back with kills during the waning moments of the match, Emory eased into the 25-13 win.
 
Lucernoni continued her fine work on the back row with seven digs and a flawless 14-for-14 effort on serve-receive. The junior also smacked a pair of aces. Meanwhile, Ashley Burgess added a nice punctuation mark to a solid freshman campaign with 16 assists and four digs.
 
---CNU---