NEWPORT NEWS, Va. -- The CNU baseball team will close out the 2014 regular season with a two-game set against the Newport News Apprentice School on Tuesday and Wednesday, playing a home-and-home series with the Builders. The Captains (23-15) will travel to Hampton for a 4:00 pm start on Tuesday, and then will host Apprentice (23-11) at 3:00 pm on Wednesday.

Christopher Newport is coming off a strong performance in the Capital Athletic Conference Tournament, reaching the championship game against nationally-ranked Salisbury University. The Captains defeated nationally-ranked York (Pa.) en route to the title game, and have won seven of their last ten games, with all three losses coming to nationally-ranked teams. 

Offensively, two Captains are leading the way hitting over .400 for the season. Billy Steel, who continues to climb the all-time charts in CNU's record book, is hitting .414 with 63 hits in 38 games played. He leads the CAC in runs scored (44) and runs batted in (41), while hitting .414 and driving out a career-high and league-leading ten home runs. Should he be in the lineup for both games against Apprentice, he will become the Captains' all-time leader in games played and games started. Junior Tommy Vitaletti is the other Captain hitting over .400, doing so in 34 games played. He is at .401 headed into the final two games, with a team-high 18 doubles and four triples. He has scored 36 times and driven in 20 runs while going a perfect 5-for-5 on the basepaths.

The CNU pitching staff has been led by the dominant efforts of seniors Bryan Bierlein, Nick Santalucia and Jacob Vaughan. Santalucia (7-1, 1.39 ERA) and Bierlein (5-4, 1.40 ERA) currently boast the best and second-best single-season ERA in program history. Vaughan is coming off one of his finest career starts and boasts a 4-1 record with a 2.97 ERA. The three have combined for 16 wins paired with just six losses, seven complete games, four saves and 150 strikeouts. 

The Apprentice School, ranked No. 4 in the USCAA national rankings, has won five of their last six games, including a 7-0 shutout against Division III Virginia Wesleyan College. Rookie Brian Belvin leads the team in home runs (3) and RBI (32) while hitting .360. On the mound, sophomore Taylor Gomer has led the way, with a 6-2 record and 1.25 ERA in 50.1 innings pitched. 

Live stats will be available for both games, with links found at CNUsports.com.