NEWPORT NEWS, Va. - The Captains of Christopher Newport played their final home game of 2019 Saturday, falling to Rowan University at TowneBank Stadium, 27-23. The Senior Day defeat dropped the Captains to 2-7 overall and 2-4 in the New Jersey Athletic Conference. 

The Captains opened a 20-0 first half lead before the Profs got on the board late in the second quarter. Christopher Newport held a 23-7 edge at halftime, only to see the Profs out-score them in the second half, 20-0. Rowan, now 3-6 and 3-3, posted all 20 second half points in the third quarter and held off a late Captains charge to hang on for the victory in front of 3,242 fans on a sunny and brisk day.

Senior quarterback Jack Anderson got the Captains off to a fast start by throwing two first quarter touchdown passes to junior wide receiver Garrison Mayo. The scores came on the first two possessions of the day for the Captains. Anderson completed 23 of 33 passes for the Captains for 273 yards and the two early scores. Senior wide receiver Nick Hunter caught eight passes for 113 yards, and Mayo caught six balls for 104 yards, all in the first half before leaving the game with an injury.

Senior kicker Dylan Curran made three of four field goal attempts, connecting from 30, 42, and 33 yards away to help the Captains build the 23-7 halftime advantage.

The Profs took control of the game by scoring two touchdowns 24 seconds apart late in the third quarter. After Rowan's sophomore quarterback Mike Husni ran for a seven-yard score with 1:44 left in the third quarter, the Profs got the ball back immediately thanks to a Captains fumble. Husni then scored on the first play following the turnover on an 11-yard scamper with 1:20 left in the quarter. The touchdown gave the Profs their first lead of the day, 27-23, and proved to be the final score of the afternoon. Husni ended up with three scores rushing and also threw for a touchdown. He finished the day 13 of 21 throwing for 158 yards.

The Captains challenged in the final minute of the game, as Anderson connected with Hunter on a 36-yard pass play to the Rowan two-yard line. After a Rowan timeout with 25 seconds on the clock, Christopher Newport inserted senior defensive lineman Ben James at the quarterback spot. James, who led the Captains with ten tackles on the day, had the ball snapped over his head resulting in a Rowan recovery to put the game on ice.

NOTES
Junior defensive back Jake Herzog intercepted his sixth pass of the season, and is now just one away from a single-season school record for picks...Christopher Newport honored 14 seniors with a pre-game ceremony just prior to kickoff...Rowan now leads the all-time series with the Captains, 8-3, and the Profs victory snapped a two-game Captains winning streak...Christopher Newport concludes the regular season next Saturday at Wesley College in Dover, Delaware. Kickoff is scheduled for 1:00 p.m.

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