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NEWPORT NEWS, Va. - For the sixth straight season since joining the Capital Athletic Conference, the Christopher Newport men's basketball team is heading to the conference's title game. The Captains won their eighth straight game Thursday night, defeating Salisbury at the Freeman Center in a semifinal battle, 87-71. CNU will host York College (Pa.) in the Championship Saturday at 5:00 p.m. at the Freeman Center. Sophomore Jason Aigner led the way for the Captains, scoring 19 points, including three three-point field goals. Sophomore Adrian Beasley (16), junior Cutch Ellis (15), and senior Marcus Carter (15) also reached double figures for the top-seeded Captains.

"I think we showed our versatility tonight as a team," Head Coach John Krikorian said. "Salisbury defended the three-point shot really well and forced us to take the ball inside and get to the line. Once we got there, we made enough shots to win the game."

The Captains, who are now 24-3 overall and 14-0 at the Freeman Center this season, made 28 of 40 foul shots (70 percent). A total of 53 fouls were called in the game, and the teams combined for 61 total free throw attempts.

Christopher Newport jumped to an early 12-point advantage, 15-3, before the Sea Gulls came alive. Salisbury grabbed the lead, 26-23, with 8:32 to play in the opening half, a lead that would prove to be SU's biggest of the night. CNU jumped back in front and opened an eight-point lead at halftime, 44-36. In the second half, the Sea Gulls cut the lead as close as two, 58-56, thanks to a 13-2 run...but could get no closer. The Captains responded by stretching the lead to as many as 19 in the final minute before celebrating the hard-fought 17-point final verdict. CNU out-rebounded Salisbury, 33-25, with Cutch Ellis pulling down a game-high nine boards. The Captains connected on 25 of 45 shots (55.6 percent) for the night and knocked down nine of 21 (42.9 percent) from beyond the arc.

Carter, who missed six of his first seven foul shots of the night, returned to form at the line down the stretch and converted seven of his last eight in crunch time. The senior first team All-Conference selection moved into seventh place on CNU's all-time scoring list, and is now 44 points behind Antoine Sinclair for sixth place. 

Aigner, who now has 102 three-pointers for the year, needs just 11 more to match the school's all-time single season mark of 113 set by Jermaine Woods in the 2001-2002 campaign. Aigner was named second team All-Conference by the CAC on Thursday.

Salisbury, 19-8 on the season, was led by sophomore Gary Briddell's 17 points. CNU recorded victories in all three meetings with SU this year, and the Captains have now won seven straight in the series and ten of the last 11. Christopher Newport holds a 30-15 edge in the series following the victory.

CNU and York will be squaring off in the CAC title game for the second straight year at the Freeman Center. The Spartans, who defeated Mary Washington in the other semifinal Thursday night, are 21-6 and have won their last ten games. Saturday's title game with York will tip off at 5:00 p.m. and will follow the women's Championship game against Southern Virginia which begins at 2:00 p.m.  York and CNU split their two games this season, with the two games decided by a total of three points. The Captains registered a 73-71 triumph at the Freeman Center on January 2nd, and the Spartans clipped the Captains in York, 82-81, on January 26th. The Spartans knocked off CNU in last year's title game, 82-73.

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