NEWPORT NEWS, Va. -- Bolstered by timely hitting and solid work on the mound, the 17th-ranked Christopher Newport baseball team swept a Capital Athletic Conference doubleheader from St. Mary's as CNU posted a 12-3 victory in the opener and a 3-2 triumph in the nightcap on a cloud-covered Saturday afternoon at Captains Park.
 
Leading the way on the hill, CNU struck out 25 batters during the twin bill, including six apiece by Joe Burris and Blake Ream. Burris eventually fired three spotless frames out of the pen in the first game, while Austin Slough did the same in the second and earned the victory for his efforts. Ryan Powell picked up the win with five solid innings of work in the opener.
 
At the plate, Kyle Corwin, Jordan Mason, and Tommy Vitaletti all roped three hits apiece during the twin bill. Connor Henderson also added one in each contest to extend his hitting streak to 14 straight. That stands as the longest run by a Captain since Vitaletti's 20-game roll in 2014.
 
With the two victories, Christopher Newport improves to 12-3 on the season, including 2-1 in CAC action. The setbacks drop St. Mary's to 4-10 overall and 0-3 in league play.
 
The beginning of the first game set the tone for the remainder of the afternoon. Earning the start, Powell found his groove quickly as he put away the first nine batters, including three strikeouts. He also benefited from a spectacular defensive effort as Corwin made a leaping, out-stretched snag on a screamer down the third base line to eliminate the leadoff batter in the third.
 
Meanwhile, the offense gave Powell a quick lead with an unearned run in the second. After Henderson reached on a three-base error to open the frame, the next two batters were unable to move him the final 90 feet. However, Austin Henry picked up the team as he punched a two-out flare to left, which chased in the first run.
 
Although the Seahawks were able to respond and grab a 3-1 lead with a rally in the fourth, the Captains battled back in the fifth. After A.J. Nicely and Brandon Ginch started the surge with a pair of singles, Henderson rocketed a hit just inside the leftfield line to open the scoring. Continuing the two-out rally, Corwin added an RBI knock to tie the game at three before Mason and Brandon Walker registered run-scoring singles of their own to help the Captains nail down a 6-3 edge.
 
From there, CNU continued to stretch its lead. In the sixth, Corwin tattooed a bases-clearing, three-run double off the left centerfield fence with two outs to push the advantage to 9-3. One inning later, Keith Roberts blistered a dart up the middle that chased home Henry after the freshman made an acrobatic move on the base paths to avoid being stung by the rocket.
 
Still looking to expand the lead, Mason closed out the scoring in the eighth after lacing a two-run double that kicked up chalk down the rightfield line to push the edge to 12-3.
 
While the offense was putting the game away, the Captains continued to shine on the mound. Burris inherited a jam in the sixth but quickly escaped behind a pair of strikeouts. He also struck out the side in the seventh and sent another Seahawk down looking in the eighth before Logan Aylor put a bow on the game with two more punch-outs in the ninth to wrap up the victory.
 
Corwin eventually finished with two hits and four RBI in the opener, while Mason knocked in three.
 
After running away with the victory late in the first game, the Captains had a much closer fight in the nightcap. Once again, the hosts were able to scratch out an early lead after benefitting from several defensive lapses by the Seahawks. In the second, Henderson reached on an error and eventually opened the scoring after coming home on a missile off the bat of Collin Lawless, which St. Mary's rightfielder put away with a highlight-reel grab.
 
One inning later, Vitaletti skied a double to right, which dropped between a pair of pursuing outfielders. One batter later, the senior made a tremendous heads-up play. After Josh Moore lofted a high pop towards the middle of the infield, several Seahawks converged on the ball. With confusion sweeping the field, the ball eventually dropped just in front of the mound. Sprinting the entire way, Vitaletti rounded third, and after seeing that no one was covering the plate, he rolled the final 90 feet to add the first run of the inning.
 
One batter later, Henderson slammed a double to left field, which brought home Moore and gave the team a fast 3-0 lead.
 
Once again, while the offense was doing its job, the Captains continued to shine on the mound. Ream was electric in the early going as he retired the first nine batters, including an impressive second inning during which he sent three straight Seahawks down looking. Although St. Mary's was eventually able to crack the scoreboard with a single run in the fourth, the CNU bullpen took over.
 
Slough entered the game in the fifth and silenced the SMC bats. He struck out three in his first two innings of work while also capitalizing on another solid defensive effort by the Captains. In the sixth, with a runner on first, Corwin went down to his knees to stop a shot towards third. After regaining his footing, he tossed to second before Roberts made a great turn and Henderson followed with a solid scoop at first to complete the 5-4-3 double play.
 
After that point, Slough ended his afternoon with another strikeout in the seventh before Caleb Myers added two more in the eighth. Looking to close out the victory, Adam Emerson entered in the ninth and eventually locked up his fourth save of the season to seal the 3-2 triumph.
 
Along with CNU's work on the mound and at the plate, the squad also swiped five bases during the twin bill, including two by Nicely. Vitaletti added his team-leading 11th stolen base in the first game as well.
 
Christopher Newport will return to action on Tuesday when the Captains host Stevenson at 3 p.m.
 
---CNU---