NEWPORT NEWS, Va. — As the Christopher Newport women’s basketball team returns from Puerto Rico later this evening, they will be doing so as the nation’s top-ranked team according to the WBCA Coaches Poll. The Captains slid up to No. 1 this week after maintaining its perfect record through games played on December 18.
The Captains have been elevated to the top spot in the national rankings for just the second time in program history after debuting at No. 1 during the 2021-22 season. Christopher Newport first secured the No. 1 spot on January 31, 2021 and held onto the designation for the final five weeks of the 2021-22 season. This year, they opened the year ranked No. 6 in the WBCA Division III Preseason Poll and, powered by the perfect 10-0 start, steadily climbed to No. 1.
Additionally, Christopher Newport moved up to No. 4 in the D3hoops.com Top 25, which was released late Monday evening. As both polls were finalized, the Captains were adding an 11th win to their season-opening spurt, defeating SUNY Cortland (8-2) by a final count of 89-49.
Christopher Newport is now 58-2 over the last 60 games, with both losses coming by just five points to team’s ranked in the top-ten nationally. This season, head coach Bill Broderick has guided one of the most dominant performances of his career, as Christopher Newport is leading the nation in scoring margin by defeating opponents on average by 45.2 points per game. The Captains have paired the nation’s third-ranked scoring offense, pouring in 90.7 points per game, with the ninth-ranked scoring defense, holding opponents to just 45.2 points per game. Offensively, CNU has buried 47.7 percent of their field goal attempts, ranking second nationally, and defensively, CNU has forced 33.8 turnovers per game to rank fourth in the country.
Individually, fifth-year senior guard Sondra Fan continues to climb the all-time scoring charts and is among the nation’s leading three-point shooters again this season. Averaging 14.0 points per game, Fan leads the team and is knocking down 49 percent of her total attempts this season. From beyond the arc, the Poquoson, Va. native ranks 11th in the country in conversion rate at and in the top-25 in total makes, with 28.
After senior forward Anaya Simmons led the nation in field-goal percentage a year ago, she is back in the conversation again…
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