NEWPORT NEWS, Va. - Christopher Newport and Virginia Wesleyan will battle Sunday at Captains Park for the NCAA Newport News Regional Championship. CNU, ranked 11th in the nation, split a pair of games on a hot and sunny Saturday at Captains Park, losing to the Marlins, 7-6 in eight innings, and then bouncing back to post a 7-6 win to oust Gettysburg from the four-team field.

Play on Sunday will begin at 12:00 p.m. with the top-ranked Marlins needing just one win to close out the Regional. If the Captains can force a second and deciding game, the first pitch is set for approximately 2:30 p.m.

The Captains, appearing in their 12th straight NCAA Tournament, came up short in the first of three games played on Saturday, dropping a one-run decision to Virginia Wesleyan in eight innings, 7-6. CNU, the visiting team, cracked three home runs with freshman Patty Maye Ohanian starting the scoring with a two-run blast in the top of the first inning. The shot was the 11th of the season for the Capital Athletic Conference's Rookie of the Year, and her third in just two games in the Regional.

After the Marlins had surged ahead, 5-2, the Captains edged closer with a single run in the third inning on an errant throw allowing senior Leah Andrews to score and make it a 5-3 game. Then sophomore Tara Deck went yard with a solo shot leading off the fourth inning, her seventh of the season, to cut the Marlins' lead to 5-4. After Virginia Wesleyan added a run in the bottom of the fourth, the Captains recorded their third home run of the game, a two-run shot off the bat of sophomore first baseman Calah Savage in the top of the seventh inning to tie the game at 6-6. The blast was the fifth of the year for Savage.

The Marlins, top-ranked in the nation and defending National Champions, would not back down and won the game with an RBI hit from shortstop Kiersten Richardson in the bottom of the eighth frame to improve to 47-2 on the season. The victory was the 400th for VWU Head Coach Brandon Elliott. Sophomore Aubrey Bates took the loss for the Captains to fall to 15-4 on the year. Bates entered the game in relief of Ohanian, who pitched just two innings, leaving the pitching circle after giving up five runs. Bates allowed just three hits in five-and-a-third innings and both runs she gave up were unearned. Wesleyan starter Hanna Hull was relieved in the fourth inning, but returned to throw a 1-2-3 eighth inning and upped her record to 33-3 on the year.

The second game of the day would feature two Pennsylvania schools in the first elimination game of the four-team field, and Gettysburg advanced with an 11-4 triumph over Messiah. The Bullets trailed the Falcons, 4-3, heading to the bottom of the sixth inning and then exploded for eight runs to post the seven-run victory. Gettysburg improved to 25-15 with the win, and ended Messiah's season at 27-18.

Gettysburg would advance to play Christopher Newport in the third and final game of the day at Captains Field. The battle proved to be a back-and-forth affair, with four lead changes. CNU, again the visiting team after losing a coin flip, scored in each of the last five innings and held on for the one-run victory to improve to 37-9. Sophomore starter Laura Kate Moss went the distance, improving to 12-4 on the year. She got back-to-back fly balls in the bottom of the seventh to end the game and strand the potential game-tying run on first base.

At the plate, the Captains again were led by Ohanian, who drove in three runs with two singles and a double. The freshman slugger has now set a new single-season school record for runs batted in with 67, and also now leads the country thanks to ten RBI in three games in the Regional. Sophomore Grace Wild also posted three hits as the Captains ended Gettysburg's season at 25-16. Andrews, freshman catcher Emerald Cheesbrew, and senior third baseman Savannah Couch all brought home runs with key doubles for CNU as the Captains survived to advance to play Sunday. 

The winner of Sunday's Regional Championship will advance to the best-of-three Super Regional next weekend against the winner of the Emory Regional. Virginia Wesleyan has won all three games this season vs. CNU, and the Marlins have been the top team in the NFCA's National Weekly Rankings for the last 20 polls dating back to last season.

Sunday's action will again be streamed live on CNUsports.com/live with video and live stats available shortly before noon.