NEWPORT NEWS, Va. -- After racing out to a big lead in the first quarter, the Christopher Newport women's basketball team cruised to another big win, their eighth straight. The Captains (13-2, 6-2) built a 26-10 lead in the first quarter against York College of Pennsylvania (12-3, 6-2), and finished with a flourish to cap a 76-56 win and move into second place in the Capital Athletic Conference standings. 

The box score is riddled with fine individual performances, including a career-high 23 points from sophomore Anitra Thomas. The second-year guard drilled 9-of-16 shots including four three-pointers to notch her first career 20-point game, and added four assists and two rebounds for good measure. The starting point guard, Makenzie Fancher, chipped in nine points on three triples, but did most of her damage setting up others, locking in a new career high with seven assists. 

In the front court, sophomore Devon Byrd registered a career-high on the glass, with 13 rebounds, and finished with her first career double-double, adding 10 points. Byrd also finished with six steals and four assists, filling the stat sheet in 32 minutes for the Captains. On the other end of the floor, junior Sam Hruz matched her own Freeman Center record with six blocked shots, but the Captains held the Spartans' leading scorer in check with just 3-of-10 shooting. 

After giving up the first bucket of the game on a short jumper by Morgan Kuehne, the CNU defense locked down and got out to a 10-2 start. All ten points came in the paint as Byrd, Thomas, Sam Porter and Jessica Daguilh looked to control the game early. The first of 11 made three-pointers came next from Thomas, followed by second-chance bucket from Byrd and a pair of free-throws by Daguilh. With a 10-point lead and just over two minutes remaining in the first quarter, CNU scored nine of the last 11 to take a 26-10 lead at the first break. Byrd finished the period with eight points as CNU dominated the paint by a count of 18-4. CNU also chipped in eight points off turnovers and nine on second-chance opportunities. 

The torrid start for the Captains slowed drastically in the second as York attempted to cut into the double-digit lead, but a solid finish to the first half was enough to get CNU back in control headed to the locker room. The Spartans cut it back to single digits twice in the final two and a half minutes on back-to-back layups by Hruz and Beth Wiseley, but the Captains answered with back-to-back treys from Fancher and Bailey Dufrene to regain momentum. CNU carried a 37-25 lead into halftime, holding York to 37% shooting in the first 20 minutes. 

After halftime, CNU was able to keep York at arm's length, teetering between a 9-14 point lead for the third quarter. Then, in the fourth quarter, the offense kept the pressure on and extended the lead to a game-high 20 with 5:26 remaining. The lead came after two more triples from Fancher and Thomas, followed by a steal and fast-break layup by Thomas. She scored eight points in the fourth quarter, wrapping up a balanced game with a new career-high of 23 points. 

The Captains defense was on top of their game again, forcing 22 turnovers with 15 steals, and holding the Spartans to just 34% shooting in the game. It is the 12th time this season the CNU defense has held an opponent to 40% shooting or worse, and the 13th opponent to score less than 60 points against the Captains this season. CNU outrebounded the Spartans, 47-33, and hauled in 20 offensive boards. 

With the win, Christopher Newport moves into a tie with York for second in the CAC standings. After Mary Washington defeated Marymount on Saturday, the Saints hold just a one-game lead over the Spartans and Captains, with ten games remaining in the CAC schedule. 

Christopher Newport will put its eight-game winning streak on the line again this Wednesday, January 20 as they hit the road for three straight games. The Captains will face St. Mary's (Md.) on Wednesday, with tip scheduled for 6:00 pm.