BUENA VISTA, Va. - The Captains of Christopher Newport sailed to two triumphs Friday over Southern Virginia, beating the Knights by scores of 17-0 and 12-0. Both games were shortened to five innings due to the eight-run rule, and the victories put the Captains in a Saturday showdown at Frostburg State for the Capital Athletic Conference regular-season title.

CNU and Frostburg State are both 11-1 in the CAC heading into Saturday's regular-season finale. The doubleheader will begin at 1:00 p.m. in Frostburg, Md. The Bobcats defeated Mary Washington on Friday by scores of 1-0 and 2-1. The league champion will host next week's CAC Tournament beginning on Thursday morning.

Christopher Newport erupted Friday for 29 runs on 28 hits in the twin bill. Freshman Aubrey Bates and senior Tara Heatwole benefited from the offensive explosion, both throwing shutout ball in the circle for CNU. Bates won the opener, allowing five hits, and improved to 9-2 on the season. Heatwole gave up just one hit in the nightcap, raising her record to 8-5 for the year.

The Captains blasted four home runs in the opener and scored in each of the first three innings, opening an 11-0 advantage. CNU then posted a six-run fifth inning to put the finishing touches on the 17-0 victory. Keith Parr's squad didn't waste any time in the second game, jumping to an 8-0 lead in the first inning and cruising to the 12-0 final.

Freshman Liz Andrews drove in five runs in the opener, including four on a grand slam home run in the second inning. It was her second home run of the season, and she finished the day four-for-six at the plate with eight runs batted in.

Junior Rachael Payne posted five hits in eight trips to the plate for the day, also scoring five times and driving in five runs. Payne smacked her second home run of the year in the first game, and raised her season's average to a team-high .486.

Senior Jenna Sprinkle and junior Morgan Wooddell both posted their first home runs of the season in the opening game at Harvey-Dryden Field.

Southern Virginia, now 9-23 overall and 0-12 in conference play, was victimized by ten errors in the doubleheader.

Christopher Newport is now 26-8 overall heading into the finale on Saturday, and the Captains are guaranteed either the top or second seed in the five-team CAC Tournament next week. Salisbury wrapped up the third seed on Friday, and York, Mary Washington, and Wesley all have hopes of claiming the fourth and fifth spots.

Live video and stats of the CNU-Frostburg State doubleheader will be available Saturday on CNUSports.com/live beginning shortly before 1:00 p.m.