Captains Season Ends in Heartbreak A Fantastic Season Falls One Game Short of History

TREY GREENWELL TRAJAN.GREENWELL.21@CNU.EDU

On Saturday afternoon, the Captains faced second-ranked Transylvania University in the NCAA Division III National Championship Game. The game was played at the American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas. It was the second time in Division III history that one school had both a Men’s and Women’s team appear in National Championship Games.

Unfortunately, both teams could not come home victorious. While the Captains were able to keep the game close, they fell just short with a 57-52 defeat that ended their perfect season.

The Captains built a nine-point lead early on in the game due to stellar defense early on. However,

GRACE GRILES GRACE.GRILES.20@CNU.EDU

Malaga and Fortescue explained that when picking CNU, they never expected that making it to the National Championship would be on their list of to-do’s. For both of them this was not even a goal they considered when picking colleges. “It was always one of my goals to play at the collegiate level. I think it just happened to be at CNU,” Malagar said. Malaga was asked how it felt to be at CNU knowing that you are about to play in a National Championship, and she responded, “I am just super grateful to be in this position. When discussing playing basketball at CNU Fortescue agreed that it was something of a chance. “I just feel really blessed, and it doesn’t feel real. As a transfer I didn’t know I was going to come here right away. Luckily Coach B let me play, and I got along really well with the team. I’m just really thankful for the opportunity to play in a National Championship. It’s just crazy to think about

Transylvania was able to trim the lead to three by the end of the quarter. At around the seven minute mark of the second quarter, Transylvania took the lead. After a very defensive first half, Transylvania had a narrow 23-21 lead at the half.

In the third quarter, Transylvania gained momentum. A 13-0 run gave them a double digit lead with just under five minutes remaining in the quarter. However, the Captains defense began to take over. A pair of turnovers led to two quick baskets from the Captains which cut the lead to seven. A layup from Sophomore Hannah Orloff made it a four point game but a made three-pointer from Transylvania brought the lead to seven at the end of the quarter.

The fourth quarter started out as a back and forth contest. A series of missed three- pointers from Transylvania and three consecutive made jump shots from the Captains made it a one point game. A pair of made free throws from Graduate Student Lauren Fortescue tied the game at 47. A pair of made free throws from Transylvania allowed them to regain the lead with 90 seconds left but a made jumper from Junior Gabbi San Diego tied the game again. A made layup from Transylvania gave them the lead. After a Captains timeout, the potential game-tying shot fell short and the Captains bid at a National Championship ended with a 57-52 defeat.

The Captains mostly outplayed Transylvania, shooting 36 percent from the field to Transylvania’s 30 as well as