BRIDGEWATER, Va. -- The Christopher Newport bullpen tossed five clean innings to keep the 18th-ranked Captains within striking distance, but a late rally fell just short on the road Wednesday afternoon as Bridgewater College held off the Captains for a 5-4 win.
Zach Dzarnowski led the offense with three hits including an eighth-inning run-scoring single to pull CNU within one.
The Captains took an early 3-0 lead in the top of the first, jumping on Bridgewater's starting pitcher with three singles in the first four batters.
Scott Crosson kicked things off with an infield single, extending his team-leading hit streak to 12 games with a game-opening hit. Two batters later, Dzarnowski moved Crosson up to second and
Jake Benedict followed with an RBI rip up the middle.
Back-to-back walks from
Brandon Cassedy and
Justin Bowers loaded the bases and walked in a run to make it 2-0 before
Alec Reilly grounded out to second base to chase in the inning's third tally.
The home team struck back for two in the first with a two-run home run and then took the lead with back-to-back long balls in the third. That would be all the offense the Eagles could muster against the CNU pitching staff, but it would prove to be enough after taking a 5-3 lead after three.
Jack Braley came in to relieve
Jack Anderson (1-1) and worked through three clean innings in the middle of the game. Braley retired the side in order in both the fourth and sixth innings and worked around two hits in the fifth with an inning-ending double play. He then handed the ball off to
Kyle Lewis who finished out five straight scoreless frames for the CNU bullpen. Lewis struck out two and finished the seventh with a groundball before getting three outs in four batters in the eighth, including his third strikeout.
Unfortunately for the Captains, though, the Bridgewater bullpen was keeping the Captains from scoring equally as well. CNU broke through to cut the lead in half in the eighth inning when Crosson walked and
Justin Liakos came in to pinch run for the designated hitter. Liakos moved up to second on a wild pitch and then raced home on Dzarnowski's single into left field to make it 5-4. A pitching change ended the threat for the Captains as Bridgewater escaped without surrendering another run.
Crosson reached base three times going 1-for-3 with a pair of walks while Dzarnowski was 3-for-3 with a run scored and an RBI.
Christopher Newport will return home for a three-game series against Penn State Harrisburg this weekend. The Captains will host the Lions in a doubleheader on Saturday, March 11 with first pitch slated for 11:00 a.m. -- on Sunday, following Daylight Saving Time adjusting the clocks forward an hour, CNU will return to the field at Noon for game three of the series. Live stats will be available for all three games and a live video webcast at CNUsports.com/watch on Sunday.
