FREDERICKSBURG, Va. -- In a record-breaking season on the diamond, the third-ranked Christopher Newport baseball team also made history in the post-season awards as the Capital Athletic Conference announced the All-League honors Wednesday afternoon. A record-breaking six Captains earned first team All-Conference honors while nearly the entire starting roster collected recognition with a record-tying ten All-League selections. Capping the 2019 All-Conference awards for CNU, head coach John Harvell was named the CAC Coach of the Year for the second straight season. 

Eight starting position players earned All-CAC honors along with a pair of pitchers. Starting pitcher Josh Husby was one of three first team All-Conference starters while junior Tyler Jumper was named the league's top reliever as the lone first team selection out of the bullpen. Rounding out the first team All-CAC picks was the majority of the infield as seniors Ryan Grubbs (C), Nicholas Baham (1B), Nick DiNapoli (SS), and Seth Woodard (3B) all collected the accolades. On the second team, the entire outfield of Conner Clark, Jordan Mason, and Trey Hicks were joined by senior second baseman Joseph Cutchins. 

This season, Coach Harvell collected his 500th career win while also guiding the Captains to the 800th win in team history. The architect of the Captains statistically historical season in his 19th year at the helm earned his second consecutive Coach of the Year accolade in the Capital Athletic Conference. He guided CNU to it's sixth 30-win campaign and second straight, while having the Captains positioned well for it's 10th NCAA Tournament appearance. Harvell will coach the Captains this week for a chance to win the CAC Championship after finishing second in the league standings in 2019. He also guided CNU back to the peak of the national rankings, earning a No. 1 spot in one week and maintaining a position among the top-five nationally all season long. Under his tutelage, CNU leads the nation in scoring, walks, hits, runs, on-base percentage, and slugging percentage this season and ranks in the top ten in home runs, doubles, and batting average. 

Helping lead the way was his dominant offense, headlined by the four first team All-Conference infielders. Starting at the corners, Nicholas Baham and Seth Woodard have been catalysts for the run-scoring machine, leading the team in RBI and extra-base hits. Behind the plate, Ryan Grubbs has been the most consistent on-base threat in the nation and at shortstop, Nick DiNapoli has provided sound defense and a high-powered bat in the middle of the lineup. 

Baham leads the nation in home runs this season with 19, shattering the program and CAC record for long balls in a season. He also set a new league record for career home runs, with 36, and continues to climb the all-time charts both at CNU and as a member of the league. The driving force behind one of the nation's elite offenses, Baham is hitting .335 with 60 RBI, 51 runs scored and a .719 slugging percentage. He also provides gold glove caliber defense at first base with just two errors in over 300 chances this season while serving as one of only four players to start all 39 games this season. 

Following a first team All-America junior campaign, Woodard has shown again what earned him that designation a year ago. He currently leads the nation in walks while obliterating the near 20-year old program record with 48 free passes. Hitting second in the dangerous Captains lineup, Woodard has scored 57 times this season, ranking fourth in the nation, while also driving in 57 runs, ranking fifth in the country. The Newport News, Va. native has started all 39 games this season and is hitting .324 with an on-base percentage over .500 for the season. 

Playing to Woodard's left in 37 starts this season, DiNapoli has posted one of the most dominant seasons by a shortstop in program history. With 102 total bases this year, DiNapoli's senior season ranks third behind Hall of Famer Trae Bailey (132 in 2008) and Billy Steel (117 in 2014) while playing shortstop for the Captains. He ranks third on the team with a .390 average while also ranking in the top ten nationally in runs scored per game with 52 trips across the plate this year. He has 60 hits, including 22 for extra-bases, while driving in 41 runs and adding a perfect 11-for-11 on the basepaths. 

Rounding out the offensive first team All-Conference players is the Captains' primary starting backstop in Ryan Grubbs. The senior catcher is currently sporting eye-popping ratios with a .431 average, .676 slugging percentage, and .631 on-base percentage this season; those numbers would register as all-time great marks at Christopher Newport. Beyond that, the .631 OBP currently leads the nation and ranks among the best all-time at any level of NCAA play. He has delivered 39 RBI and scored 42 times this season while earning 38 walks and 17 hit-by-pitches, helping lead to his stellar OBP. Grubbs came into the season with 45 career hits and has 44 base knocks in his senior campaign, raising his career batting average to .326. 

On the mound, sophomore Josh Husby has anchored the starting staff for CNU by going 9-1 with a 3.00 ERA over 69.0 innings of work. Husby has struck out 73 batters and walked just 15 while holding opponents to a .206 batting average against. His nine wins currently ranks sixth nationally and leads the CAC in 2019. He also ranks in the top-50 nationally in strikeouts and WHIP, with a 1.00 mark. 

Leading a dominant bullpen effort this season, junior Tyler Jumper has allowed runs in just six of his 22 appearances while posting one of the finest relief efforts in program history. He is 6-0 with a 1.16 ERA over 38.2 IP. He has struck out 36 batters and allowed just five earned runs on 25 hits. His strikeout-to-walk ratio is over 4.0 and he has worked multiple innings in eight appearances this season. 

Also earning All-Conference honors as members of the second team, the Captains outfield and second baseman were recognized on Wednesday. Starting second baseman Joseph Cutchins enjoyed a breakout season in his final campaign, ranking second on the team in hitting with a .391 average. He has driven in 39 runs and scored 40 times while posting 10 doubles and 7 home runs. In the outfield, left fielder Conner Clark is among the national leaders in stolen bases, with 34, while hitting .347 and leading the team in scoring with 58 runs scored. He has driven in 35 runs and has started all 39 games. In center field, senior Jordan Mason tied the program record for career hits and leads the team this season with 61 base hits. He is hitting .359 with 46 RBI and 47 runs scored while climbing the all-time charts at CNU in a number of categories. Finally, junior Trey Hicks earned All-CAC honors in his first year with the Captains after hitting .339 and ranking second on the team in home runs with 11. He has 38 RBI and 41 runs scored while starting 38 of 39 games played in right field. 

Christopher Newport matched the program record of 10 all-conference selections set in 2013 but have never had more than five first team all-league performers in a single season until 2019. Since joining the Capital Athletic Conference, the Captains have never had more than five overall picks and no more than four first team selections. The CAC Coach of the Year honor is the fifth overall conference COY pick for Harvell after being honored in 2001, 2008, 2012, and 2018. 

The Captains are back in action on Thursday, May 9 as they host the first game in a best-of-three CAC Championship Series against fourth-seeded Penn State Harrisburg. First pitch is scheduled for 3:30 pm against the Lions on Thursday. 


2019 Capital Athletic Conference Baseball All-League Honors
2019 CAC Player of the Year: Bret Williams, Penn State Harrisburg
2019 CAC Rookie of the Year: Austin Denlinger, York
2019 CAC Coach of the Year: John Harvell, Christopher Newport (2nd straight)

2019 All-CAC Baseball First Team

NAME	YR.	POS.	TEAM	HOMETOWN/HS	PREVIOUS ALL-CAC HONORS
Jimmy Adkins	So.	SP	Salisbury	Delmar, Del./Delmar
Josh Husby	So.	SP	Christopher Newport	Hampton, Va./Kecoughtan
Travis Van Houten	Jr.	SP	Penn State Harrisburg	Saylorsburg, Pa./Pleasant Valley
Tyler Jumper	Jr.	RP	Christopher Newport	Fairfax, Va./Robinson
Ryan Grubbs	Sr.	C	Christopher Newport	Richmond, Va./Douglas Freeman
Nicholas Baham	Sr.	1B	Christopher Newport	Smithfield, Va./Smithfield
Miguel Torres	Sr.	2B	Penn State Harrisburg	Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic / Allegheny College of Maryland	2nd in '18
Nick DiNapoli	Sr.	SS	Christopher Newport	Beacon, N.Y./Beacon
Seth Woodard	Sr.	3B	Christopher Newport	Newport News, Va./Woodside	POY & 1st in '18
Justin Meekins	Jr.	OF	Salisbury	Berlin, Md./Stephen Decature	1st in '18, 1st in '17
Grant Oberholtzer	Sr.	OF	York	Lancaster, Pa./Hempfield	1st in '18
Bret Williams	Jr.	OF	Penn State Harrisburg	Mount Carmel, Pa./Mount Carmel	1st in '18, 2nd in '17
Travis Van Houten	Jr.	DH	Penn State Harrisburg	Saylorsburg, Pa./Pleasant Valley

 

2019 All-CAC Baseball Second Team

NAME	YR.	POS.	TEAM	HOMETOWN/HS	PREVIOUS ALL-CAC HONORS
Canon Anderson	So.	OF	Southern Virginia	Mesa, Ariz./Mountain View HS
Hank Biggs	Sr.	SP	Mary Washington	Purcellville, Va./Woodgrove
Conner Clark	So.	OF	Christopher Newport	Chesapeake, Va./Greenbriar Christian Academy
Joseph Cutchins	Sr.	2B	Christopher Newport	Goochland, Va./Goochland
Austin Denlinger	Fr.	SS	York	Elizabethtown, Pa./Elizabethtown Area
Zach Gettys	So.	SP	Penn State Harrisburg	York, Pa./West York
Brad Haas	Jr.	OF	Salisbury	Mt. Airy, Md./South Carroll
Christian Hague	Jr.	OF	Mary Washington	Moseley, Va./Cosby	2nd in '18
Trey Hicks	Jr.	OF	Christopher Newport	Poquoson, Va./Poquoson
Xavier Marmol	Fr.	SP	Salisbury	Clarksburg, Md./Mount Airy Christian Academy
Jordan Mason	Sr.	OF	Christopher Newport	Chesapeake, Va./Western Branch
Bowen Plagge	Jr.	C	St. Mary's	Leonardtown, Md./Leonardtown
Ryan Roell	Jr.	1B	Frostburg State	Pittsburgh, Pa./Keystone Oaks