BABSON PARK, Ma. - Christopher Newport's season came to an end Friday night, as Keene State (N.H.) defeated the second-ranked Captains, 68-64. The defeat at Staake Gymnasium on the Babson College campus snapped a 21-game CNU winning streak, and ended the year with a 27-3 record.

The Captains, Champions of the Capital Athletic Conference for the second straight season, were victimized by poor foul shooting. CNU made just nine of 23 shots (39 percent) for the night, and just two of 12 in the second half.

"I give Keene State a lot of credit," Head Coach John Krikorian said. "Their defensive tenacity really made an impact in the game. Obviously our foul shooting played a big part in it, but we knew coming in we'd face a tough challenge, and they just made more plays." 

Christopher Newport held a 36-28 lead at halftime, and went ahead by as many as 12 in the second half, 45-33. The Owls, now 22-9, took their first lead, 51-50, with 9:47 to play and ended the game on a 35-19 scoring run.

The loss marked the final game for four CNU seniors; Rayshard Brown, Tim Daly, Justin Hampton, and Kevin Regimbal.

"They have raised the bar, and their impact on the program will be felt for a long time to come," Krikorian continued. "I can't say enough about what they've done over the last four years, and we're going to see just how much our younger players picked up from them in the future."

Juniors Marcus Carter (16 points) and Aaron McFarland (12 points) led the Captains in the scoring column. Keene State's defense held Daly to just one shot all night, although the senior big man pulled down ten rebounds and blocked three shots.

CNU's defense, top-ranked in the country, held Keene State to just 35 percent shooting (18 of 51) from the field, and created 12 turnovers. Christopher Newport struggled all night from beyond the arc, making just nine of 33 attempts. Overall, the Captains shot a slightly-better 37 percent for the night (23 of 62).

Four starters reached double figures for Keene State, led by senior Jeff Lunn's 20 points. The Owls' poor shooting from the field was made up for at the line. Keene State knocked down 29 of 35 at the charity stripe (83 percent), and out-rebounded the Captains, 43-38.

Keene State will advance to the Elite Eight to play 27-2 and third-ranked Babson Saturday night. Babson downed Tufts, 87-80, in the nightcap.

Keene State lost to the Captains last year, 74-62, in the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament in a game played in Oswego, N.Y.

The defeat Friday night was the first for CNU since December 17th, when the Captains lost at Salisbury on a half-court, three-pointer at the buzzer. The loss ended the 50th season of CNU men's basketball, and stopped the Captains' quest to return to the Final Four. CNU advanced to Salem last year for the first time in program history, losing in the national semi-finals.