Bishop women fall to CNU in conference hoops action

Newport News, VA - Christopher Newport shot nearly 60 percent from the floor on Tuesday night, cruising to a 93-40 victory over visiting North Carolina Wesleyan in USA South women's basketball action at the Freeman Center.  With the win, CNU improves to 8-6 overall, 2-1 in league action.  The Bishops have now lost two straight and stand at 4-6 on the season, 1-2 in conference play.

The opening eight minutes of the first half were back-and-forth with CNU building a 16-12 advantage with 12:03 remaining.  Wesleyan, however, began to struggle offensively while the Captains caught fire from the floor, setting the stage for a 35-3 run to close the half.  Christopher Newport took the 51-15 lead into the break.

The Captains continued their hot shooting in the second half, knocking down 61.3 percent of their attempts.  The Bishops rebounded to shoot over 40 percent from the floor in the period, but CNU's first-half run proved to be too much to overcome.

CNU never trailed in the contest and had five Captains reached double figures.  Nikki Rowland led the way with a game-high 16 points, while Candace Bryant turned in the game's lone double-double with 14 points and 11 rebounds.  As a team, CNU dominated the boards, out-rebounding the Bishops 49-16 on the night.

Senior April Wilson paced Wesleyan with eight points and three rebounds.

The Bishops will take a break from USA South play on Thursday night when they travel to Chowan University for a 7:00 p.m. match-up with the Hawks.