NEWPORT NEWS, Va. - Christopher Newport University fell to Randolph-Macon College Friday in the opening of three games in the NCAA Regional at Captains Park, 4-3, but bounced back to beat Alfred University, 8-3, later in the day to advance to Saturday's Regional Championship. The Captains, now 37-5 and ranked second in the nation, will play the Yellow Jackets (36-11) on Saturday morning beginning at 11:00 a.m. at Captains Park.
Randolph-Macon has won both of its games since the regional began on Friday and needs just one win to wrap up the regional title, while the Captains would have to beat R-MC twice on Saturday to advance to the Super Regionals next week. A second game Saturday, if necessary, would be played at 1:30 p.m. at Captains Park.
The four-team double-elimination regional was cut in half on Friday, as Alfred University ousted Farmingdale State, 6-5 in eight innings, prior to the Captains knocking out Alfred, 8-3, in the final of three games played on a hot and sunny afternoon at Captains Park.
In the opening game, Randolph-Macon senior pitcher Gracie Ellis out-dueled CNU senior
Jamie Martin in a 4-3 R-MC triumph. The Yellow Jackets broke a 3-3 tie with a single run in the fifth inning on a sacrifice fly off the bat of Reagan Hill, and Ellis retired the final 15 Captains to come to the plate to seal the one-run win, and improve her record to 23-4 on the year.
The Captains opened the scoring with an RBI double from senior
Sammy Drew in the first frame, and then registered solo home runs from sophomore
Simone Thompson in the second and fifth-year senior
Brooke Greaver in the third. The long ball from Thompson was her second in as many games in the regional, while Greaver's was her 13th of the season and pulled the Captains even 3-3.
Martin's record fell to 16-3, as she went the distance allowing four runs on five hits while striking out five and walking two.
After the defeat,
Keith Parr's team returned to action in the final game of the day, and broke open a close game with Alfred by scoring five runs in the final three frames for an 8-3 triumph. Senior
Olivia Kim got the start for the Captains, and thew the first three innings before being relieved by freshman
Hailey Butler, who earned the victory to improve to 2-0 for the season. Butler tossed two scoreless innings, and was followed by senior
Kate Alger and Martin, who each threw 1-2-3 innings in the sixth and seventh to close it out.
CNU's offense came alive, breaking a 3-3 tie with two runs in the fifth and three more in the seventh to oust the Saxons. Again, Thompson came up big with a two-run home run in the fifth, her third long ball in as many games in the regional, to give the Captains a 5-3 edge. In the seventh, Drew scored Greaver with a double, and senior shortstop
Kendall Bentley drove home the final two runs of the game with a single to center to provide the 8-3 final verdict.
Drew was five-for-six in the two games Friday, driving in four runs for the Captains. Greaver and Thompson each posted three hits as Christopher Newport advanced to the regional championship Saturday.
Heading into Saturday's action, sophomore
Candace Slaw needs just one hit and one run scored to set new single-season CNU records. Slaw has tallied 75 hits this season, tied with Patty Maye Ohanion's total in 2018, and has scored 63 runs, even with Leah Andrews mark, also in 2018. Slaw has posted a batting average this season of .517 through Friday's games, the highest single-season batting average in school history.
Greaver's RBI Friday gives her 60 for the season and 169 for her career, just one behind Jessie Atkinson for the third spot on CNU's all-time list. Greaver's home run, her 13th of the season, was the 39th of her career, just one behind Sabrina Hill for the third place spot on CNU's all-time home run list.
The Captains and Yellow Jackets have now played three games this season, and R-MC has won two of three. The teams split a doubleheader in Ashland on April 9th.
Live video of the Championship Saturday at 11:00 a.m. can be viewed by clicking
HERE.
