NEWPORT NEWS, Va. -- The eighth-ranked CNU baseball Captains (5-1, 3-0) will host a big series this weekend against Maryville College (4-1, 2-1) in USA South Conference action. A doubleheader is scheduled for 11:00 am on Saturday, followed by a single game at 1:00 pm on Sunday. 

Christopher Newport opened the season with five straight victories before suffering its first loss on Thursday to Randolph-Macon College, 11-8. Conference play begins earlier than ever before for the Captains as the USA South has grown to nine teams in 2013. Last weekend, CNU swept Ferrum while Maryville took two of three from Averett. 

Over the weekend, Austin Chrismon and Bryan Bierlein each tossed seven inning gems for CNU and are expected to start a pair of games this weekend. Bierlein earned USA South Pitcher of the Week honors after striking out a career-high 10 batters in a 2-1 win over Ferrum. Chrismon combined with two others for a 3-0 shutout over the Panthers. 

Justin Weaver leads the offense, batting .476 with 10 RBI and six extra-base hits. Junior shortstop Billy Steel is also off to a hot start, with four doubles and a .358 batting average through the first six games.

Maryville has been led by Landon Talley, hitting .471 with a team-high six RBI. Six starters are hitting over .300 in the young season and are averaging nearly six runs per game. On the hill, Chris Sutherland is likely to get the ball at least once after posting a 0.90 ERA in 10 innings of work so far. 

Live stats will be available at CNUsports.com