NEWPORT NEWS, Va. -- The Christopher Newport baseball team hosts a pivotal doubleheader in Capital Athletic Conference action on Saturday, taking on Wesley College (18-14, 10-6) with first pitch scheduled for Noon. Prior to the twin bill, head coach
John Harvell and the Department of Athletics will celebrate a collection of seniors in a pre-game ceremony, honoring their accomplishments over the last several years. Live stats and a live video webcast will be available at CNUsports.com/live.
The regular season home finale is a crucial one in terms of the CAC Tournament seeding, The Wolverines are currently in third place, just one game up on the Captains in the CAC standings, while trailing a two-way tie for first place between Frostburg State and Salisbury. The regular season champion will host the bulk of next week's conference tournament, after the top three seeds host opening round action on Tuesday, April 19. The Captains are in contention for one of those top three spots, depending on results of Saturday's CAC action.
Coming into the weekend, the Captains have run their overall record to 24-10 with a CAC mark of 9-7. This week, CNU is scheduled to play seven games in as many days, with Saturday's doubleheader being games five and six before closing out the regular season on Sunday at the Newport News Apprentice School.
One of the nation's elite power-hitting teams in 2016, Christopher Newport comes into Saturday's contest ranking second in the country in total home runs. The Captains also rank third nationally in runs scored and third in stolen bases, boasting a well-rounded attack with seven starters hitting over .300 for the year. Senior
Tommy Vitaletti has been at the forefront of the attack all season long, leading the team witha .390 average, 10 HR, 40 RBI, 44 runs and 17 stolen bases. His 99 total bases this year rank fifth in the nation and lead the league.
Fellow seniors
Connor Henderson and
Kyle Corwin have kicked into high gear in the late portion of the season, with Henderson blasting six home runs last week and Corwin posting four straight multi-hit performances. Also playing in their final home regular season games will be pitchers
Adam Emerson and
Blake Ream. Emerson has six saves this season while Ream leads the team in strikeouts with 51 in 43.1 innings of work.
Wesley comes into Saturday's doubleheader with one of the league's top offenses, hitting .330 as a group. Sophomore Christopher Seibert leads the attack, hitting .379 with 7 homers and 37 RBI, while senior outfielders Ron Morello and KeAndre Jones also feature high averages. Morello is swatting a team best .400 while Jones is at .375, and both have driven in 25 runs this season. The pitching staff has struggled at times this season, featuring a 6.10 ERA as a team, but a patient offense that doesn't strike out often has countered to put the Wolverines in position for a top seed in the CAC Tournament.
Links to the live stats and video webcast are at CNUsports.com/live, or found on the baseball schedule at CNUsports.com.
