WBB Game Notes

NEWPORT NEWS, Va. -- The nationally-ranked Christopher Newport basketball teams are headed back on the road this weekend as they travel to Frostburg State University for a pair of Capital Athletic Conference matchups. First, the 17th-ranked CNU women (11-3, 2-1) will take on the Bobcats (10-3, 2-1) at 1:00 pm followed by the 21st-ranked CNU men's program (12-2, 2-1) facing host Frostburg (7-6, 3-0) at 3:00 pm. 

On the men's side, the Bobcats are currently the only team left standing undefeated in conference play with a 3-0 start to the season. CNU is locked in a four-way tie for second at 2-1 with Mary Washington, York (Pa.), and Salisbury. The women's bout will break an early-season tie for third in the league standings as CNU and Frostburg State are both 2-1 through the first three games. Southern Virginia and Salisbury lead the league with 3-0 starts and will face off in CAC action as well on Saturday. 

The games will be presented live online at CNUsports.com/watch and the FSU Department of Athletics will also provide live stats at game time. The men's game will be broadcast live on Xtra 99.1 FM, the CNU/Pepsi Radio Network with pre-game show set for approximately 20 minutes before tip. 

Head coach John Krikorian and the CNU men's team bounced back with a stellar defensive effort against St. Mary's (Md.) on Wednesday night, defeating the Seahawks at the Freeman Center, 79-52. That win was bolstered by a 20-point, 10-rebound performance from leading scorer Marcus Carter and a breakout 17-point effort from junior Savonte Chappell. The team defense held St. Mary's (Md.) to under 25% shooting in the game and ranks second nationally in field-goal percentage defense on the season, holding opponents to 34.4% shooting. 

Carter leads the team in scoring this season and ranks fifth in the Capital Athletic Conference with 16.6 points per game. He recently became just the 10th player in CNU basketball history to eclipse 1,500 career points and is 16 points shy of tying Aaron McFarland for 9th on the all-time scoring chart. He is also only three rebounds shy of 700 for his career, which would make him only the 10th player to score at least 1,000 points and grab at least 700 rebounds in his career. 

The trip to Frostburg State will be the last in Capital Athletic Conference regular season play for the CNU men's basketball team, as the Bobcats have announced their intention to leave the league in the summer of 2019. CNU own's a 16-5 all-time advantage in the series after the team's split regular season victories last year. 

Frostburg is led by Edwin Cole, averaging a double-double, and Daniel Alexander, who ranks second in the CAC in scoring. Cole is scoring 16.5 points and hauling in 10.8 rebounds per game while adding 25 blocked shots. Alexander, a three-year starter for the Bobcats, is having a career year so far while leading the team in minutes played. 

On the women's side, head coach Carrie Saunders has the Bobcats off to their finest start since 2009-10 when the team went 19-8 as members of the AMCC. Saunders is in her fifth season leading the team. This year, junior Victoria Diggs is leading the way with nearly 14 points per game while shooting almost 40% from beyond the arc. Frostburg State is balanced, with four of the five starters averaging at least 6.9 points per game. 

CNU will counter with their own brand of balance, coming off an impressive win over St. Mary's (Md.) on Wednesday night. The Captains scored over 100 points for the third time this season, defeating the Seahawks, 103-59, led by a net-torching performance from rookie Jessica Foster. Foster buried nine three-pointers, becoming just the second player in program history to knock down at least nine triples in a game, and scored a season-high 27 points. 

Foster has already moved up to second all-time among freshmen in three-pointers made, with 39, and the Captains' rookie is knocking down 40.6% of her attempts from long range. After her Wednesday night effort, Foster ranks second on the team in scoring, averaging 10.3 points per game. Senior forward Jessica Daguilh also is averaging 10.3 points per game this season and leads the team in rebounding with 7.6 boards per contest. 

Following Saturday's road trip to Frostburg State, the Captains will stay on the road to face Southern Virginia University in another pivotal CAC matchup on Wednesday, January 16.