NEWPORT NEWS, Va. -- Senior
Caitlin Crump matched her career high with 16 points to lead a well-balanced overall performance by the nationally-ranked CNU women's basketball team as the Captains improved to 3-0 courtesy of a dominant 84-47 victory against Saint Vincent College (0-2) on Wednesday night. The Captains won their home opener for the 25th consecutive year with the win over the Bearcats in the first ever matchup against Saint Vincent.
Three CNU players finished in double figures with rookie
Zoe Burruss adding 11 and senior
Kendra Rigo pumping in 10 off the bench. Senior forward
Jessica Dornak fell just shy of a double-double in the game with 8 points and 10 rebounds as she led the effort on the glass as Christopher Newport out-rebounded St. Vincent, 48-34. Rookie
Katherine Maroulis hauled in six rebounds in six minutes of action late to rank second on the team.
Overall, the Captains showcased its patented balance on both sides of the floor. CNU had eight blocked shots, with two apiece for
Elizabeth Creed, Dornak, and Burruss. For the rookie, Burruss felt right at home in her first ever game in the Freeman Center as she added 2 assists while going 4-for-7 with three triples on the night.
Two of those three-pointers were a big part of a game-changing run to end the first quarter as the Captains finished the final four minutes of the opening stanza on a blistering 17-0 run.
Sarah Pritz kickstarted the burst with a short jumper and a nice feed to Rigo for two on back-to-back plays. Continuing to be a catalyst, Pritz snagged a defensive rebound and then drove to the basket and finished for a three-point play. Burruss then bagged a three-pointer on a pass from, who else, Pritz, and the veteran added a steal and another jumper to give the Captains a 23-11 lead with a minute to play.
The dominant run continued to the break, with Burruss splashing in another trey and
Atiana Williams finishing a layup at the buzzer to cap the 17-point run. But it was all Pritz to get things going, 3-for-3 with seven points, two assists, a steal, and a rebound over just 2:49 of game time.
Starting the second quarter with the big lead, the Captains continued to grow the advantage until it was a 25-point lead with 4:41 left in the first half on a layup by leading scorer
Madison McKenzie. The Bearcats trimmed the lead to 21 at the break, 48-27, but the momentum was fully in hand for the home team.
St. Vincent would get no closer than 19 in the second half as Christopher Newport outpaced the visitors by 16 after intermission, 36-20. The game offered head coach
Bill Broderick an opportunity to get all 17 active players into he game with ten reaching double digit minutes in the win. Rookies
Avery Stavitski and
Kalin Favreau each got into the scring column while fellow freshman
Kamari Simon added two rebounds and two assists.
In total, the Captains got 49 points off the bench, outscoring the 47 total points scored by their opponent. CNU led the nation in bench scoring in two of the last three seasons and ranked second in the third. CNU led by as many as 40 in the second half before closing out a 37-point victory for the final verdict, 84-47.
Heading back out on the road, the Captains will travel to Stockton University for a 1:00 p.m. tip against the Ospreys on Saturday, November 14.
