KANNAPOLIS, N.C. -- With a hit in each of his first four plate appearances, Christopher Newport senior leadoff man
Conner Clark became just the seventh player in program history to reach 200 hits in his career. Clark finished 4-for-5 with a pair of runs scored to help lead the Captains (4-4) past No. 3 Marietta (0-1) in the D3 Showcase hosted by the Kannapolis Cannon Ballers in North Carolina.
The win was the second for Christopher Newport over a ranked team this season after the Captains also topped No. 19 N.C. Wesleyan last weekend.
Clark rapped four of CNU's 12 hits including his milestone-reaching single to lead off the top of the 7th inning with a line drive into the center field grass. He is the first CNU player with 200 since all-time leader, Jordan Mason, reached 200 hits in the 2019 campaign and finished with a program record 231. He joins Mason, Matt Turner (225), Billy Steel (223), Trae Bailey (219), Derek Reibel (214), and Rob Robinson (200) in the exclusive club at CNU.
Hitting behind Clark, sophomore right fielder also had a strong day with a 2-for-3 effort at the dish driving in a game-high three runs against the Pioneers. Eight Captains registered at least one hit in the game with Clark and Crosson leading the way.
On the mound, sophomore left-handed starter
Jay Cassady (2-0) picked up his second win after tossing six strong innings against the nationally-ranked opponent. He allowed two runs in the bottom of the third before finishing off his day with three more clean innings. Cassady then gave the lead to
Daniel Elliott for the final three frames to slam the door on Marietta.
Elliott earned his first career save with a three-inning masterpiece that included striking out five of the last six batters he faced. He worked out of trouble in the bottom of the seventh to strand two and gave up a lead-off single in the eighth, but after that the sophomore reliever cruised through the last six outs with little issue to pick up the save.
Most of the Captains' damage came in the first two innings as the CNU bats jumped on Marietta with one in the first and five runs on six hits in the second inning. Clark came around to score in the first on a groundball for the game's first run and would also score in the second inning on a bases-clearing double by Crosson.
Prior to that knock,
Justin Bowers reached via hit-by-pitch and Elliott got on via a fielder's choice. With one out, rookie
Kevin Mackmin went the other way for a single and
Drew Caroline beat out a base hit bunt on the third base line to load the bases.
Jonathan Fisher sacrificed in a run to make it 2-0 before Clark loaded the bases again with a single into right field for his second knock of the day. That would bring up Crosson to break open the game early with a three-run double down the left field line. CNU kept the line moving when Cassady delivered an RBI single into center, closing out a big five-run inning.
In the top of the eighth, Bowers led off the inning with a triple and scampered home on a sacrifice fly by Elliott. The sophomore transfer has six extra-base hits so far this season in just six games played. Elliott finished 1-for-3 at the plate with an RBI and run scored to go with his impressive three-inning effort on the mound.
The Captains will return to Atrium Health Ballpark on Saturday night as they take on Keystone College (1-0), coming off a 6-2 win against Washington and Lee University. First pitch against the Giants is set for 6:00 p.m.
