NEWPORT NEWS, Va. -- Christopher Newport women's basketball ran its home-opener win streak to 13 straight seasons with a 95-78 victory over North Carolina Wesleyan College (0-1) on Wednesday night, improving to 2-1 on the young season. Sophomore Natalie Terwilliger just missed a double-double with 18 points and 9 rebounds and senior Kiana Kirkland added 18 points of her own to help lead the way for Christopher Newport. 

The second quarter proved to be the difference in the matchup as the Captains outscored the Battling Bishops, 27-6, in the second ten minutes of action. The Christopher Newport defense held the visitors to just six points on a 2-for-17 performance from the floor, while the defense also forced 13 turnovers and grabbed seven steals. Meanwhile, the Captains knocked down 10 field goals, led by a 4-for-6 effort from Kirkland for nine of the Captains' 27 points in the period. 

The bulk of a 23-2 run came in the first five minutes of the second quarter as the Captains extended the lead to 18, 44-26, with 5:02 remaining. The burst started late in the first quarter after N.C. Wesleyan had taken a lead, 24-22, with a minute and a half left in the frame. Rookie Anaya Simmons finished a contested layup and then Jessica Foster drilled a three-pointer after an offensive rebound by Sondra Fan to key the run that would last nearly six minutes of game action. 

In the middle of the fast-paced run for the Captains was junior guard Jasmine Norman, dishing out a pair of pretty assists before adding a three-point play on a fast-break layup. Norman had a terrific night facilitating the offense with a career-high seven assists while pouring in eight points on a 3-for-6 shooting performance. She also had three steals in just 12 minutes of action. 

At the end of the second quarter, Kirkland scored the last seven points for the Captains in the final two minutes of the first half to extend the lead at intermission to 54-30. That lead would grow to as many as 35 points in the middle of the third quarter on a three-point play by sophomore Phylicia McInnis on another dime by Norman. Her bucket and free-throw made it 71-36 with 3:45 left in the third quarter. 

N.C. Wesleyan slowly shaved that lead down into the fourth quarter, but would never get closer than 15 points against the Captains' reserves when Myesha Best hit a three-pointer to make it 85-70 with 3:06 remaining. The Captains scored 10 points in the final three minutes to hold onto a 17-point victory, 95-78. In the late stages, Julia Hobbs put in a layup off an offensive rebound, rookie Lizzie Thibodeau dropped in a pair of three-pointers, and freshman Zoe Costley sank a put-back layup for the Captains. 

The Christopher Newport defense forced 33 turnovers in the game while ripping 21 steals. Norman led a group of three players with three steals apiece as Kirkland and Bailey Hodges also grabbed three. Terwilliger notched a pair of blocked shots as the Captains swatted six in the game. 

The sophomore forward was 7-for-13 from the field and buried one three-pointer for her 18-point performance. Terwilliger grabbed nine rebounds, including four on the offensive glass, and managed to fill the stat sheet in 17 minutes of action. Kirkland also only played 17 minutes and knocked down 7-of-12 shots with a pair of three's for her 18-point effort. McInnis led the Captains' rebounding with 10 board to go with 6 points and 3 assists. 

Christopher Newport will now hit the road for four straight games starting with a neutral site battle against Washington & Lee on Saturday, November 16 at the Laura Mapp Classic in Bridgewater, Va. Tip against the Generals is scheduled for 7:30 pm. 

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