SALISBURY, MD.- The old saying is that "familiarity breeds contempt." Christopher Newport's softball team has already played Salisbury University four times this season, and Keith Parr's squad has won three of four...all at Captains Park. Now the CNU squad, riding a 17-game winning streak, will play the Sea Gulls for the first time in Maryland as the NCAA Tournament continues on Friday.

The 62-team field has been sliced to the "Sweet 16," and the Captains will take on their Capital Athletic Conference rivals in a best-of-three game "Super-Regional." The victor will travel next week to Tyler, Texas, for the National Finals.

Game time is set for 1 p.m. for Friday's single game. The teams will then match up at 1 p.m. Saturday with a third game to follow if necessary.

CNU, ranked fifth in the nation, will be taking on a Salisbury squad that is currently fourth in the country. Both teams went 3-0 last weekend in the opening regionals of NCAA play. Salisbury won three straight at home last weekend while Christopher Newport took three in a row at Virginia Wesleyan.

"We're not going to do anything different than last week," Head Coach Keith Parr said. "Being members of the same conference, we know them and they know us. We have to remain focused and limit our mistakes and good things will happen."

Christopher Newport travelled to Salisbury on Thursday morning and was scheduled to hold practice in the afternoon. The Captains won the Virginia Wesleyan regional last Sunday by beating the host Marlins of VWC for the second straight day. The triumph improved the Captains record to 38-6.

Salisbury is 38-3 this season, with all three losses coming at the hands of the Captains. The teams split a doubleheader at Captains Park on March 22nd with Salisbury winning the opening game, 11-2, and CNU taking the nightcap, 2-0. They squared off again on back-to-back days in the Capital Athletic Conference at CNU on April 18th and 19th. Christopher Newport took the first tournament game, 1-0, and then grabbed the championship with a dramatic 3-2 victory on a walk-off, pinch-hit home run in the eighth inning from CNU senior Taylor Dillow.

The schools have met a total of 61 times and the Captains hold a 31-28 lead in the all-time series with two ties. At Salisbury, the Sea Gulls hold an 11-10 advantage with one tie. The schools have met five times in NCAA play with Salisbury having won three of the five tournament games.

Friday's game will be the 500th for Keith Parr as Head Coach of the Captains. Parr has an 11-year career record of 375-123-1 for a winning percentage of .753. This is the eighth straight season his squad has advanced to the NCAA Tournament.