NEWPORT NEWS, Va. -- The 11th ranked Christopher Newport University basketball team (29-4) raced out to a nine-point lead in the first half over second-ranked Amherst College (31-1), but the Lord Jeffs depth and defense stalled the Captains run at a national championship, dropping CNU 69-59 in their first ever national semifinal appearance.

"Amherst was the better team today," said head coach Carolyn Hunter. "I just want to congratulate them, because they played a great game, but I'm incredibly proud of my team for a terrific season."

The Captains will play in tomorrow's National Consolation game for a chance at back-to-back 30-win seasons and a third place finish in the national tournament. CNU will face the loser of the second semifinal game between defending national champion Washington University in St. Louis and host Illinois Wesleyan University. Tip will be at 4:00 pm CT/5:00 pm ET. There will be a viewing party on Christopher Newport's campus in the Washington Room of the David Student Union. 

Despite Amherst's experience, making their third straight trip to the NCAA Tournament Final Four, it was Christopher Newport's inexperienced squad, playing in their first ever, that jumped out to the early lead. CNU went up 11-2 after a Kimmy Hopkins lay-in with 13:30 remaining. Senior leading scorer Chelsie Schweers had five points in the game-opening run, scoring a traditional three-point play and then knocking down two free-throws. 

After a timeout, though, the Lord Jeffs came storming back with a 9-0 run of their own to take their first lead of the game, 12-11. Amherst would take a 20-15 lead, led by reserve Lem Atanga McCormick, who knocked down two big three-pointers for the Jeffs. She had just 15 made trey's in the season heading into the game. 

CNU answered with a 5-0 run to tie, including the first three of the night from Schweers, but Amherst finished out the first 20 minutes on an 11-6 surge to take a five-point lead into the break, 31-26. 

In the second half, the Captains' Lauren Gural stepped up for CNU, scoring seven of the first 15 points for CNU as the Captains pulled back within four, 45-41 with 12:25 remaining. That was as close at CNU would get the rest of the way, however, as Amherst added seven straight to take the first double-digit lead of the game for either team, 52-41. Kristyn Dunleavy knocked down a pair of free-throws with eight minutes remaining to finish out the run. 

The two teams would play even basketball for the rest of the game, back-and-forth trading baskets. Schweers hit her second three of the game with 1:49 remaining in the game to break the NCAA Tournament record for three-pointers made. She broke Stacy Leeds (Washington-St. Louis) record, standing since 1994, with 23 made trey's in five games played. 

Her three-pointer would pull CNU back within ten, 60-50, but Amherst would knock down 7-of-8 free throws down the stretch to hold off any chance at a comeback. The Lord Jeffs advanced to play in the national championship game tomorrow night at 7:00 pm. 

The Captains were successful in holding down the WBCA National Player of the Year, Jaclyn Daigneault, for the most part, holding her to just eight points. Daigneault added 10 rebounds, an assist, three blocks and a steal. Meanwhile, stepping up for the Jeffs were four players in double figures, led by Caroline Stedman's 18 and Sarah Leyman's 14. Dunleavy and McCormick each added 10 for Amherst.

CNU was led by Schweers' 19, giving her 151 for the tournament, just 11 points shy of the NCAA Div. III record for a tournament. Gural was tremendous for the Captains, posting a double-double with 13 points and 11 rebounds on 6-of-12 shooting. She added two assists and two steals. Senior Jessica Moore rounded out the double-figure scoring for CNU with 14 points.

Amherst came into the game averaging a +29.4 margin of victory in its four NCAA Tournament games, and CNU forced the closest game the nation's number two team had seen in weeks. The Lord Jeffs shot 41.4% from the field and outrebounded the Captains 40-37, including 16 offensive boards. The dominance on the glass led to 20 second-chance points and 36 points in the paint.

CNU shot 39% from the field on 23-of-59 shooting, but struggled from beyond the arc. The Captains rank number on in the nation in three-point shooting, but managed just 27.3% in the semifinal game on 3-11 shooting. 

CNU played in front of a crowd of 1,200 people in the Shirk Center on the campus of Illinois Wesleyan College and will return for the NCAA National Consolation game tomorrow at 4 pm locally. The game will be presented via live webcast on NCAA.com and live stats will be available.