DANVILLE, Va, - For the second straight week to open the season, the Captains of Christopher Newport were involved in a tight battle that was decided in the game's final seconds. Unfortunately for the Captains, this week the finish was not as enjoyable. CNUÂ fell to 1-1 Saturday night, dropping a 30-27 overtime decision at Averett University.
The Captains trailed for most of the night, before coming from behind in the fourth quarter to send the game to overtime. Averett evened its record at 1-1 with the victory in front of 2,000 fans at Campbell Stadium. The Cougars claimed the victory thanks to an overtime-opening field goal to take a 30-27 lead. As the Captains began their first possession in the extra period, the Cougars intercepted a pass on the first play to end the game and secure the three-point triumph.
The Captains had earlier forced the overtime thanks to an interception by fifth-year senior
D.J. Wright to halt a potential Cougar game-winning drive. Earlier in the fourth quarter, Christopher Newport kicker
Ryan Castle connected on a 46-yard field goal to pull the Captains even, 24-24, with 12:37 to play. Five minutes later, Castle drilled a 22-yard field goal to put the Captains ahead, 27-24, their first lead since early in the opening quarter.
"We didn't finish this game the way we wanted to, obviously, but I'm pleased with the effort we put out there," Head Coach
Art Link said. "We battled all night and really showed what we're made of. A couple of key lapses really hurt us, and we're going to continue working hard to get better."
Captains sophomore quarterback
Matt Dzierski ran for two scores and threw a touchdown pass in the road loss, giving him four rushing touchdowns and three touchdown passes in the first two games of the season. Dzierski completed 17 of 31 passes for 203 yards and also ran the ball 17 times for 55 yards. Sophomore safety
Shawn Hamilton led the Captains on defense, posting ten tackles and an interception, one of three on the night for the Captains.
The victory for Averett was just the third in 15 all-time meetings with the Captains. Saturday's game was the first of the two former league-mates since 2014, when the Captains left the USA South to join the New Jersey Athletic Conference. The Captains next host Ferrum College (1-0) next Saturday, with kickoff set for 6:00 p.m. at TowneBank Stadium.
