Bridgewater, Va. – The Lady Eagles traveled to the campus of Christopher Newport University on Nov. 9 to play their second game of the season and lost, 109-59.

The Captains started the game by getting the jump ball and charging down the court, scoring two points with a layup in the first seconds of the game. Senior Ericka Nettles scored a layup with an assist from sophomore Nina-Simone Clark, tying the Eagles and Captains 2-2; but this score did not last long. The Captains got another layup and two turnovers – only scoring one – to make the score 6-2. 

The Eagles, having already one foul in the game, hurried to try and catch up. Junior Mary Ruth Shifflet scrambled with the rival for the ball, giving the Eagles the inbound pass. With the score at 8-4, the Eagles were on the return from a layup, with an assist Shifflet sank a three pointer from the left wing — leaving the eagles one point behind with a new score of 8-7. The Eagles sank multiple three pointers, but eventually ended the first set of the game with a score of 24-15, in favor of Christopher Newport.  

“Early on, every game provides lots of takeaways,” said Shifflet. “For the CNU game, it was crucial for me to take better care of the ball, rebound with more purpose, limit the other team’s possessions while increasing our team’s positions and score off the other team’s turnovers.”

In the second quarter, the Eagles struggled to keep up. The Captains packed on the defense with a full court press at all times, causing a lot of turnovers and fast breaks — leading the Eagles to fall behind in the score. After two free-throws from the Captains, the Eagles started picking up the pace, brought more aggressive passes to the game and pushed into the paint for layups. 

Ultimately, when BC started to defend with more aggression, more fouls accumulated than points. The sudden burst of energy from the Eagles was not enough and they went into the third quarter, in favor of CNU, with a score of 48-34. Riddled with more fouls from BC, turnovers and fast breaks from CNU, the Captains earned a 20 point lead. 

“Bridgewater’s turnovers and Christopher Newport’s fast breaks really hurt our team’s momentum and made me tired a lot faster,” said Shifflet. 

Going into the last and final quarter, the Captains scored a three pointer and managed a turnover, but all to no avail. At that point, the score was 90-48, and the Eagles were behind almost 50 points. 

A bucket from sophomore Jaden Alsberry and an assist from Clark revived the Eagles, but the Eagles defense fell through and the Captains scored more fast breaks and three pointers — letting the final quarter end with a score of 109-59. 

The Eagles, now with a record of 0-3, plan to continue the fight and compete at Virginia Wesleyan on Wednesday, Nov. 17 at 7 p.m.