Game Notes ||
Live Video ||
Live Stats
AMHERST, Mass. -- The undefeated and top-ranked Christopher Newport women's basketball team is set to travel to Amherst, Massachusetts this weekend for the sectional round of the 2022 NCAA Division III Women's Basketball Championship. The Captains (26-0) will take on No. 10/13 Trinity (Texas) at 5:00 p.m. in LeFrak Gymnasium on the campus of Amherst College this Friday, March 11 with a berth to the national quarterfinals on the line.
CNU will be making the team's sixth consecutive appearance in the Round of 16 while Trinity enters the sectional round for the first time since the 2017 version of the event. This season, both team's are riding lengthy winning streaks with Christopher Newport's 43-game roll the longest active run in NCAA Basketball, men's or women's, while Trinity has not lost in 26 straight games, the third longest active streak in DIII.
The winner will advance to the NCAA National Quarterfinal round on Saturday against either No. 8 Amherst or No. 11 Tufts, who will match up in Friday night's second game at approximately 7:00 p.m. Ticket prices for the games will be $10 for adults and $7 for students, seniors, and children. Per Amherst regulations,
spectators will be required to wear masks and to show proof of full vaccination (including booster) or a negative test from the previous 72 hours.
For fans unable to attend the games in person, live stats and a live video webcast will be provided for fans and links can be found at the top of this page or on the women's basketball schedule at CNUsports.com.
This will be the first-ever meeting between the two teams as Christopher Newport takes on it's 41st different rival in NCAA Tournament play. CNU reached the sectional round with an 89-42 win over Mitchell College in the first round and a 107-52 win over Mount St. Mary College in the second round. Both of those games were played on a neutral court at Johns Hopkins University.
CNU enters the weekend with the third ranked scoring offense in the nation averaging 86.4 poitns per game. They also feature a top-50 scoring defense and the second-ranked scoring margin in the nation (+33.0). The Captains rank second nationally in turnover margin, fourth in turnovers forced per game, and sixth in steals per game. On the offensive end, Christopher Newport is among the most efficient teams in the country, ranking third with a .470 team field-goal percentage this season.
Leading the way is Coast-To-Coast Athletic Conference Player of the Year
Sondra Fan with 14.3 points and 2.4 steals per game. Fan is knocking down 50.6 percent of her shots and ranks fifth nationally in three-point shooting percentage with a .437 mark this season. First team All-Conference forward and C2C Tournament MVP
Anaya Simmons is also at the forefront of the Captains' attack, averaging 13.5 points and 4.7 rebounds per game this season. The junior forward leads the nation in field-goal percentage, sinking 64.4 percent of her attempts. Also in the post, first team All-C2C senior
Natalie Terwilliger rounds out a trio of top scoring Captains with 10.5 points per game. She is also averaging 2.0 blocks and a team-high 6.5 rebounds per game this season to help balance the Captains' first wave.
Trinity will counter with an efficient scorer of their own in Hailey Coleman, who ranks fifth nationally in field-goal percentage. Like CNU, the Tigers rank high nationally in field-goal percentage (11th) and force a lot of turnovers (16th in turnover margin). Maggie Shipley leads the team with 15.6 points per game while Ashlyn Milton (14.4) and Coleman (11.8) round out a Tigers trio of double-figure scorers.
Follow CNU Athletics on Twitter and Instagram, @CNUathletics, for updates before, during, and after this weekend's matchup.
