NEWPORT NEWS, Va. - It's the final week of the regular season for the Christopher Newport softball squad, and the fourth-ranked Captains play their final road games of the regular season on Wednesday. CNU, with a 24-6 overall record and a 7-1 mark in the Capital Athletic Conference, will travel to Fredericksburg to take on the Eagles of Mary Washington. Game one of the twin bill is set to start at 3:00 p.m.

The Captains are in the midst of a busy stretch, with five CAC doubleheaders in an eight-day span. Keith Parr's squad won three of four games over the weekend in Pennsylvania, splitting with York and sweeping Penn State-Harrisburg. In the first game against the Lions on Saturday, sophomore pitcher Aubrey Bates threw her first career no-hitter as the Captains blanked Penn State-Harrisburg, 4-0. Bates was named the CAC's Pitcher of the Week on Monday for the second straight week, and the third time this season. The no-hitter was the 24th in CNU softball history, and the first in more than four years.

CNU tops the conference right now with the 7-1 league mark. York and Salisbury are tied for the second spot with 7-3 CAC records.

The Eagles of Mary Washington are 14-17-1 overall and 3-4-1 in CAC play. UMW has lost three games in a row, including both ends of a Saturday doubleheader at York. The Captains and Eagles have met 55 times, with CNU holding a 47-8 advantage in the all-time series including four wins last year at Captains Park. CNU posted victories by scores of 10-2 and 9-1 on March 12th in the regular season matchups, and then beat the Eagles by scores of 9-0 and 4-3 in the CAC Tournament at CNU.

Head Coach Keith Parr could join an exclusive list with a sweep on Wednesday. Parr is just two wins shy of 500 for his career, and has a 498-159-1 mark over 15 seasons for a winning percentage of .758. Two victories on Wednesday and Parr would become the 56th coach in NCAA Division III softball history to reach the 500-win plateau.

Live video and stats will be available Wednesday afternoon beginning at 3:00 p.m. at CNUsports.com/live.



.