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DANVILLE, Va. — A great start by Averett had Christopher Newport University on its heels early, but the Captains rallied in the second half to beat the Cougars 23-14 on Saturday afternoon at the Cougar Den.

Averett (2-4, 1-2 USA South) looked sharp in the first quarter, taking its first drive in for a score. The Cougars ran all eight plays of its possession, which culminated with a Kirkland Brown 3-yard run up the middle for a touchdown to put Averett ahead 7-0.

After stuffing CNU (4-2, 3-0 USA South) on fourth down on its ensuing possession, Averett's offense continued to have its way with the Captains. A 14-yard completion to Joe McCaul over the middle set up a 32-yard touchdown pass by Brown to a wide-open Jeff Redd down the right sideline for a 32-yard touchdown, giving Averett a 14-0 lead with 2:39 left in the first quarter.

Averett's defense also played strong, forcing an interception and a fumble that the Cougars recovered. However, Averett couldn't convert on either turnover and maintined its 14-point lead entering the half.

In the second half, Averett couldn't find the same success on offense or defense. Interceptions by CNU on back-to-back possessions helped the Captains take the momentum. The first pick led to a 49-yard Markeese Stovall touchdown run, and the second resulted in a 75-yard touchdown pass from Lyndon Garner to Rudy Rudolph.

Captains kicker Stephen Denuel's 40-yard field goal with 2:51 left in the third quarter gave CNU its first lead, 17-14.

Garner also added a 4-yard touchdown run midway through the fourth quarter to extend CNU's lead. The Captains finished with 255 yards on the ground, including 129 by Stovall.

Averett was led offensively by Redd, who caught two passes for 57 yards and ran 10 times for 50 yards. Ke'Von White added 18 carries for 94 yards.

Averett travels to Maryville College next Saturday for a 2 p.m. kickoff.