NEWPORT NEWS, Va. -- Christopher Newport (4-3) got a season-high 16 points from rookie Nik Biberaj and shot nearly 54% from the field as a team, but St. Mary's College (Md.), receiving votes in the D3hoops.com National Rankings, pulled out an 85-77 win against the Captains in front of a season-high crowd of over 800 on Thursday night.

CNU knocked down 30 of their 56 shots for a 53.6% shooting percentage, including a scorching 61.5% shooting effort in the second half. The Captains trailed by double figures for less than a minute in the game, and closed within three points late in the game with a second half tear ignited by sophomore Tra Benefield.

In the first half, both teams had their share of the lead, with seven ties and five lead changes. Christopher Newport led with 3:20 showing in the first half on a layup by senior Conley Taylor. A three-pointer on the next possession from Seahawks leading scorer Christian MacAuley tied it up. A pair of free-throws at the end of the half gave the visitors a 39-36 lead at the break.

Taylor and Biberaj led the Captains in the first few minutes of the second half, scoring five and four points respectively in the first 2:37 of the second half to get CNU back on top, 45-44. St. Mary's responded with a big run, though, to pull ahead by the biggest margin of the game. The Seahawks went up by 10 with a 15-4 run, capped by a three-pointer from Nick Laguerre with 14:04 remaining.

The Captains answered with a surge of their own, forcing three straight turnovers and closing within four on a layup by Biberaj with 12:14 left, 59-54. A pair of free-throws by point guard Paul Meredith made it 67-64 with 6:50 remaining, but the Seahawks managed to hold off the Captains in the final eight minutes to win by a final of 85-77. 

Benefield was dominant in the second-half run for the Captains, scoring 14 points and grabbing six rebounds on 7-of-10 shooting. Taylor was also impressive, knocking down 4-of-5 attempts for 10 points.

For the game, Taylor led the way with 25 points on an efficient 11-for-15 shooting night. Benefield added 18 points and a game-high eight rebounds while Biberaj's career-high 16 points came on 6-of-10 shooting.

St. Mary's was led by three players in double figures as Chris Hutchinson poured in a team-high 14 on 6-of-8 from the field, while MacAuley and Jeff Haus each had 10 points in the win.

Both teams got high percentage shots in the game and finished hot from the field. St. Mary's shot 49.1% on 28-of-57 for the game and CNU was 53.6% on 30-of-56. CNU scored 50 points in the paint while SMC managed 42 off the bench.

The Captains are away from home for the rest of December, not returning to the Freeman Center until December 29 and 30 in the Captains Shootout. CNU is next in action is on the road at Piedmont and LaGrange, future USA South opponents, on December 16 and 18 respectively.