NEWPORT NEWS, Va. -- The nationally-ranked Christopher Newport women's basketball team improved to 9-0 after reaching the 100-point plateau for the second time this season, defeating North Carolina Wesleyan at home, 110-57. The Captains dominated the paint, scoring 64 points close to the basket led by a game-high 16 apiece from Anaya Simmons and Hannah Orloff. 

Christopher Newport won by a margin of 53 points, marking the team's fifth win by 50 or more this season. The Captains shot 57.9 percent (44-76) from the field while the starting five paced the attack by shooting over 73 percent in the game (22-30 combined). 

CNU caught fire early, hitting four three pointers in the first three-and-a-half minutes, including a pair by Sondra Fan to kickstart the action. Katy Rader added one and Gabbi San Diego the fourth as Christopher Newport raced out to a 10-point lead, 17-7, less than four minutes into the game. By the end of the first quarter, the home team had fired 35 points onto the scoreboard, taking a 19-point lead on a stick-back layup by Ashley Steadman in the final minute of the period. 

After closing the first on a 6-0 run, the burst carried over as CNU scored the first 15 points of the second stanza. The 21-0 run including another three-pointer by Fan and suffocating defense that led to a pair of quick layups by Simmons. The lead extended to 32 (48-16), with 7:55 showing on the second quarter clock, before taking a 61-31 advantage into the locker room. 

Simmons had 14 of her 16 points in the first half, knocking down 7-of-8 shots from the field. She led all scorers and added five rebounds, four steals, two assists, and a blocked shot in the opening half. With a big lead, she played limited minutes in the second half but added two points to tie for the game-high in scoring with 16. 

Sophomore Hannah Orloff owned the third quarter, scoring 14 points on a perfect 6-for-6 from the field with three rebounds for the Captains. The second-year forward scored a season-high 16 points with a perfect shooting performance, 7-for-7, and added four rebounds and three blocks off the bench. She led a mostly balanced attack for the reserves, that saw all but one player get into the scoring column. Camille Malagar chipped in nine points with a team-high five assists in just ten minutes of action while Taylor Rawls and Ashley Steadman each added six points. 

But the game was dominated by the starting five, who had an impressive overall performance as a unit. Simmons filled the sheet while Sondra Fan added 13 points and three assists on 4-of-6 shooting; Katy Rader had a dominant overall effort with nine points (4-5), four rebounds, three steals, and two assists; Hannah Kaloi knocked down four shots for eight points with three rebounds; and Gabbi San Diego was 3-for-3 with a triple for seven points while adding two assists. 

CNU also saw the first action of the season for rookie McKenna Snively, who returned from an injury to snag two rebounds, dish one assist, and grab one of the Captains' 21 steals in the game. 

N.C. Wesleyan was led by Kaniya Cromartie with nine points and 14 rebounds while Corynthian Williams had a team-high 11 points for the Battling Bishops. 

After improving to 9-0, the Captains extended the second-longest home winning streak in program history to 33 games, dating back to December 16, 2018. CNU will return home on December 30, but before that, the Captains will head to Puerto Rico for a pair against Colorado College (Dec 18) and Cortland (Dec 19). Live video will be available for a fee, with links found on the women's basketball schedule at CNUsports.com.