NEWPORT NEWS, Va. -- Natalie Terwilliger shined in her final regular season game with 25 points and a career-high 16 rebounds to highlight a tremendous Senior Night victory for the top-ranked Christopher Newport women's basketball team on Saturday night. The Captains (22-0) wrapped up an undefeated regular season for just the second time in program history with a 76-62 win over Salisbury University in front of over 1,000 fans at the Freeman Center. 

The win came in front of the ninth-largest crowd in Freeman Center history as the No. 1 CNU Women's Basketball team extended it's nation-leading win streak to 39 straight games. It was also the 29th straight home win as the team used a dominant second quarter to pull away from the talented Salisbury squad. 

Coming into the game against Christopher Newport, Salisbury had dropped just four games and all four were to teams currently ranked in the Top 25. Out of the gate, it was the Sea Gulls that took control as they became just the third team this season to lead by more than four points in a game against the Captains. Salisbury led by as many as seven (22-15) in the first half before a 20-4 run to close the second quarter put CNU in control. 

In the pivotal second quarter, the Captains held Salisbury to just 3-of-17 shooting (17.6%) and dominated the glass with a 15-8 advantage. Terwilliger led the way in the rebounding column with six boards in the quarter while she also scored five points in the run. Sophomore point guard Gabbi San Diego added five points while junior Anaya Simmons was 3-for-4 from the floor and led the team with six points in the frame. 

Carrying a nine-point advantage into the locker room, 35-26, the Captains shots 42.4% (14-33) after a slow start from the field. Terwilliger already had a double-double at halftime with 11 points and 11 rebounds to lead all players. 

In the third quarter, the Captains held off the Sea Gulls after the visitors chipped away at the lead and trailed by just one, 47-46, with 1:46 remaining. A huge burst by Simmons coined an 8-0 run that shifted momentum back in favor of the Captains. After a timeout was called by head coach Bill Broderick, senior Jessica Foster slipped a dynamite pass through the lane for Terwilliger to finish and Simmons snagged a steal moments later. Fouled on the play, the junior forward converted both free throws before heading back to the defensive end. 

Once there, Simmons again made a huge play, swatting Kylie Webb's layup and grabbing the rebound. Like deja vu, it was Foster to Terwilliger on the other end before Simmons added another block and two free-throws to end the third quarter. 

The run would continue on a third pass from Foster to Terwilliger to start the fourth quarter, followed by another finish by the Captains' leader in the paint off a feed from Jovia Winkey. The 12-0 burst put CNU up by 13 early in the fourth quarter, 59-46. 

The lead would grow to as many as 18, 72-54, with 4:17 remaining when Julia Ng knocked down a pair of free throws after an offensive rebound. Terwilliger and Simmons also extended the lead back to 18 on a pair of trips to the free-throw line before Salisbury closed the final gap to 14, 76-62, with 1:03 remaining. 

Terwilliger finished with a career-high 16 rebounds and fell just two points shy of her best scoring performance with 25 on 10-of-14 shooting. Simmons, coming off the bench for the first time this season because of Senior Day, finished with 20 points on 7-of-10 shooting and a perfect 6-for-6 from the charity stripe. San Diego rounded out the double-figure scoring performances for CNU with 10 points in 14 minutes of action while dishing out three assists. 

The senior class contributed across the board as the six players each showed up in the box score. In addition to Terwilliger's dominance, Ng finished with six points, six boards, a block and a steal; Phylicia McInnis kickstarted the game with a three-pointer after CNU started slow offensively; Jessica Foster dished out five assists and hit a triple of her own; Sondra Fan played a team-high 28 minutes and scored four points with three assists; and, Julia Hobbs hauled in a pair of rebounds for the Captains off the bench. 

The six seniors are the first since 2009-10 to register an undefeated regular season and improved to 72-10 over the span of their careers. 

Christopher Newport will now wait for the official announcement on Monday that they have secured the top seed in next week's Coast-To-Coast Athletic Conference Championship, hosted by UC Santa Cruz. The Captains will play on Friday, February 25 after earning a first-round bye.