FORT WAYNE, IN. - Christopher Newport University's NCAA Tournament journey came to a close Saturday night, as the Captains suffered a 72-58 loss to Emory University in a National Semifinal game at Allen County War Memorial Coliseum. John Krikorian's squad ends the year with a 25-6 record, and advanced to the Final Four for the fourth time in program history, all since 2016.

Junior Toa Hollenbeck led the way for the Captains with 16 points, and was joined in double figures by fellow juniors Tyson Henderson (11) and Ethan Ward (10).

"I'm just so proud of this team, I've said it over and over again," Krikorian said following the defeat. "These guys left it all out there all season long. Emory made some shots and we didn't, but we did a lot of really good things tonight to put us in position to advance, but it just wasn't meant to be. For this group to be on our wall as a Final Four team is an incredible legacy for them, and for Collin Hines, our only senior, I just can't say enough about his leadership and how much he did for over his career."

Click HERE for the CNU post-game press conference.

The Captains fell behind in the early-going, 12-5, but stormed from behind to take a 35-26 lead with 3:17 to play until halftime. Emory then took control, scoring the final six points of the first half to cut the lead to three at the break, 35-32. The Eagles continued the surge to start the second stanza, eventually taking the lead back, 41-39, and never fell behind again. The Captains were victimized by 26 percent shooting in the second half as the Eagles pushed the lead to as many as 17 en route to the 14-point victory.

Senior Collin Hines saw his CNU career come to an end, posting nine rebounds, six assists, four points, and a block. Hines played in 122 career games at CNU, just one shy of his brother Jahn Hines and three off the all-time mark of 125 games played by Marcus Carter. Hines, the only senior on the CNU roster, was the last remaining Captain from the 2023 National Championship squad.

The Captains out-rebounded the Eagles, 50-47, and held Emory, a team that scores an average of 90 points per game this season, to just 72. Junior Zyir Baskerville led the Captains with 11 rebounds, and also scored nine points and dished out four assists. Hollenbeck's 16-point effort gives him 1,336 career points in 90 games in a CNU uniform. He moved into 16th place on CNU's all-time scoring list, and will begin his senior season just 16 points behind Ted Berry for the 15th position on the list. 

Emory improved to 27-3 with the win, and the Eagles were led by senior Ben Pearce, who scored 21 points. Junior Ethan Fauss scored 15, pulled down 14 boards, and blocked three shots helping the Eagles advance to the NCAA title game for the first time in their history. Emory will play the University of Mary Washington in Indianapolis, Indiana, on April 5th in the Championship game. Mary Washington, a fellow member of the Coast-To-Coast Athletic Conference, defeated the defending National Champions, Trinity (Ct.), 64-61, in the other semifinal on Saturday.

The game marked the first time this season the Captains lost after either leading or being tied at halftime. CNU was 22-0 prior to being out-scored by Emory, 40-23, in Saturday night's second half. 

The 2025-26 season was the 58th in program history, and the Captains advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the 29th time...and the tenth consecutive season, the longest-running streak in the nation. CNU is now 41-28 all-time in NCAA Tournament games.