GRANTHAM, Pa. -- The Captains defense forced 28 turnovers and grabbed 15 steals but was unable to overcome a cold shooting performance from the field in a 74-50 loss at nationally-ranked Messiah College (2-0) on Saturday afternoon. Playing in the championship game of the Tip-Off Tournament hosted by the Falcons, the Christopher Newport women's basketball team fell to 1-1 on the season with the setback. 

The Captains used an 18-5 run in the first quarter to take an early lead but a second-quarter drought allowed the home team to flip the scoreboard and take control of the matchup. The Falcons scored the first 15 points of the second stanza to turn a seven-point deficit into an eight-point advantage. 

Junior guard Bailey Hodges ended the run with a layup and a three-pointer from sophomore Jessica Foster trimmed the lead to just four, 32-28, with less than a minute to go. Messiah answered with the final four points to take a 36-28 edge into the locker room. 

In the opening stages of the second half, the Captains worked the lead back down to just one when Jasmine Norman buried a three-pointer off an assist by Hodges with 6:28 left in the third quarter. Unfortunately, the offense cooled again and Messiah countered with a 13-1 run to close the period and take a double-digit lead into the final period. Messiah won the fourth and extended the final score to a 24-point win, 74-50. 

Another strong defensive showing by the Captains was led by Sondra Fan and Hodges with three steals apiece, while Norman added a pair. Seven other players logged one steal each including all five starters. 

Fan led the Christopher Newport scoring column with 11 points with three Captains finishing with six points apiece: Anaya Simmons, Julia Hobbs, and Phylicia McInnis. McInnis had an efficient outing, knocking down both of her attempted three-pointers in two minutes of action while adding an offensive rebound. Simmons, Hobbs, and Hodges all had seven rebounds for the Captains as they out-rebounded the Falcons 42-38 overall. 

For the game, the Captains shot 25% (18-72) from the field while Messiah knocked down 44% (17-39). The Falcons scored 36 of their points from the free-throw line, knocking down 90% from the charity stripe (36-40). Christopher Newport reached the line 19 times, hitting eight free-throws. 

Christopher Newport will next host North Carolina Wesleyan College for the home opener on Wednesday, November 13 at 7:00 pm. A live video webcast and live stats will be available for the game at the Freeman Center.