BRIDGEWATER, Va. -- Powered by a pair of near double-doubles from the front court, Christopher Newport women's basketball improved to 3-1 on the season with a 76-73 win against Washington & Lee University (1-1) in the Laura Mapp Classic. The neutral site battle against the Generals was played in Nininger Hall at Bridgewater College, against whom the Captains will play on Sunday. 

Rookie Anaya Simmons and sophomore Natalie Terwilliger led the way for the Captains as both flirted with the first Christopher Newport double-double of the season. Simmons notched 17 points and nine rebounds on 5-of-6 shooting while Terwilliger poured in 15 points while grabbing eight rebounds and knocking down 5-of-8 of her attempts. 

The game was played close throughout the first half but Christopher Newport never held a lead in the opening 20 minutes of action. Out of the locker room the Captains tied the game twice on a Sondra Fan jumper and a pair of free-throws by Simmons before taking their first lead of the ball game with 7:51 showing on the third quarter clock. Junior Bailey Hodges grabbed a steal and then played Fan upcourt for a layup and the Captains tooka  41-39 advantage. 

Washington & Lee teetered back in front for a moment, but a layup from Simmons and back-to-back three-pointers by Terwilliger extended the Captains lead to what was then a game-high seven-point lead, 51-44. In the fourth quarter, W&L continued to cut into the Captains small lead, but Christopher Newport responded each time with a variety of different players. Kiana Kirkland had a layup, Terwilliger knocked down another, and Julia Ng slipped one in off the glass as the Captains held off Washington & Lee. Fan dropped in another layup with 3:42 remaining to give Christopher Newport the largest lead of the night for either team with a 9-point spread, 72-63, but the Generals would not go quietly. 

In the final three minutes, Washington & Lee force a pair of turnovers and went on an 11-0 burst to take a 73-72 lead with less than a minute to play. After the Captains defense forced a turnover with 30 seconds to go, Simmons was fouled and sent to the line. The rookie missed both free-throws but junior guard Jasmine Norman, standing at 5-4, hauled in a gigantic offensive rebound for the Captains. Moments later, Simmons scored the go-ahead layup with 19 seconds left. 

On the other end, the Christopher Newport defense forced another turnover and would go to the line to ice the victory. Jessica Foster and Simmons each tacked on free-throws to extend the late lead for the final score, 76-73. 

Taylor Casey led the Generals with 23 points and Erin Hughes added 20. Jordan Diehl rounded out the double-figure scoring for W&L with 10 points. 

Christopher Newport had three in double figures as well with Simmons, Terwilliger, and Sondra Fan leading the way. Fan had 12 points, five rebounds, and a pair of assists. As a team, the Captains won the rebounding battle, 54-42, including hauling in 25 offensive rebounds. 

The Captains will return to the court on Sunday where they will take on host Bridgewater College at 4:00 pm.