On the first day of the 2022 Captains Classic, the Christopher Newport Volleyball team split their season opening matches. The Captains swept Hollins in the first match, and battled to a four-set loss with No. 4 Juniata in their second match.

Christopher Newport 3, Hollins 0 | (25-7, 25-10, 25-13)

First Set

The Captains hit a match-best .400 in the first set of the season, setting the tone for the rest of the match. Abigail Draper had five kills in the first set, which was tied for the team lead. Megan James, who also finished with five kills, hit three as part of an 8-0 run that put the Captains out in front early, and Draper helped CNU to close out the first set.

Second Set

The second set saw CNU's servers find a groove with six service aces. Two aces from Anna Dean helped CNU take the lead, Megan James added an ace, and Rebecca Frey strung together three straight aces to put CNU up 23-8, with Macy Burk later adding the set winner.

Third Set

Kyla McIntyre tallied three kills in the final set, giving her five total and bringing her even for the team lead. Noelle Starr accounted for three aces, and Rebecca Frey added two more bringing her to a team-leading five in the match. Sophia Denby scored two of the last three points in the match to help the Captains close out the three-set sweep.

Juniata 3, Christopher Newport 1 | (16-25, 25-18, 20-25, 24-26)

First Set

The Captains had trouble attacking early on with ten errors in the first set. What was a tied set swung the way of Juniata after a 7-0 run to put the Eagles up 16-9. Three-straight attacking errors from the Captains closed out the first set for Juniata.

Second Set

The Captains were quick to rebound after dropping the first set, opening to a 13-3 lead. James, who finished with 13 kills, had six in this set. Anna Dean also had two of her three aces in the second set, and the Captains held off a late surge from Juniata to even the score at 1-1.

Third Set

The two sides were close throughout the third set. Lainie Putt drove home a kill to bring CNU within one 20-19. Juniata scored two more points, but an attack error gave the serve back to CNU at 22-20. Juniata regained the serve, and then back-to-back attack errors gave the set to Juniata.

Fourth Set

The Captains battled in the fourth set, but came up just short. Megan James' 13th kill put CNU up 23-21, but Juniata evened the score at 23 after the next two points. Abigail Draper's kill got the Captains to set point, but the Eagles came back to take the next three points and the match.

News & Notes

• Freshman Megan James led the Captains in kills in both matches, 5 against Hollins and 13 against Juniata.
• Sammy Carroll totaled 43 assists between the two matches, giving her 2531 career assists as she crossed the 2500 assist mark.
• Julia Gleason finished with a career high 16 assists in the win over Hollins
• In the win over Hollins, the Captains were perfect serve receivers and did not get blocked on any of their attacks.

Next Up

Christopher Newport plays twice on the second and final day of the 2022 Captains Classic. The action starts on Saturday at 11:00am with the Captains facing Lewis & Clark followed by UW-Oshkosh. Both games can be streamed live at CNUSports.com/watch