NEWPORT NEWS, Va. -- The Christopher Newport baseball season has been powered by a potent lineup of offensive players in 2025 and, as a result, the Coast-To-Coast Athletic Conference recognized two-thirds of the CNU starting lineup as All-Conference selections on Thursday morning. Six CNU Captains garnered All-Conference recognition including four first team picks --
Jake Benedict (OF),
Doc Daniels (DH),
Aaron Maxie (1B), and
Josh Reinhold (SS).
Joining the four first teamers were
Justin Liakos (IF) and
Ayden Stuffel (OF) as honorable mention All-Conference picks in 2025. Daniels and Reinhold are repeat first team All-C2C selections while Liakos and Stuffel pick up All-C2C acclaim for the second time after earning first team honors in 2023. Maxie and Benedict are receiving their first-ever postseason recognition.
Leading the high-scoring offense from the leadoff spot all season long,
Jake Benedict put together a breakout junior campaign as the only Captain to start all 37 games. Heading into Friday's conference tournament, Benedict boasts the ninth-highest single season batting average in program history while hitting a team-best .408 in 2025. He has scored 50 runs while setting the table and has also been one of the top run producers for the Captains with 27 RBI.
Benedict slugged a team-high .618 with 20 extra-base hits including 13 doubles and five homers. He was equally as efficient on the basepaths, converting all 17 stolen base attempts he had during the year to lead the team in thefts. Defensively, Benedict committed just a pair of errors in 83 chances for a .976 fielding percentage.
Hitting in the three-hole was Reinhold, who started 32 of his 33 games played during his junior campaign. The record-breaking on-base machine reached in base in all but four games this season and has secured first base in all but five games in his 116-game playing acreer at Christopher Newport. This season, he is hitting .310 with 14 extra-base hits and 23 RBI while scoring 29 times.
Reinhold is the first shortstop since CNU Athletics Hall of Famer Trae Bailey in 2008 and 2009 to earn first team selections in back-to-back seasons. Reinhold and Bailey are the only shortstops to be recognized as first team picks more than once while Ted Tignor (2nd - 2001, 2nd - 2002) and Billy Steel (HM - 2013, 1st - 2014) each were selected as All-Conference multiple times.
Also earning first team All-Conference honors at first base was cleanup hitter
Aaron Maxie. The sophomore lefty was sensational in 2025 with a .398 batting average and .528 on-base percentage while slugging .525. His on-base percentage is the highest ever for a second-year player and ranks fourth all-time at Christopher Newport among players with at least 75 at-bats. He ripped 47 base hits and added 30 walks to his ledger while starting in 36 games played.
Maxie was the top run producer for Christopher Newport in 2025 with 40 runs batted in out of the cleanup spot. He had six doubles and three home runs while scoring 27 runs. At first base, Maxie was a dominant force defensively with just a single error in 288 total chances for a .997 fielding percentage. That mark ranks as the finest defensive season for a non-catcher in program history.
Rounding out the first team All-C2C selections is repeat pick
Doc Daniels, who started the year at second base but slid into the DH spot due to a mid-season injury. His dangerous bat was in the lineup in 26 games this season with 20 starts and the veteran right-hander hit .364 on the year. He piled up 28 hits in 77 at-bats including five doubles. With 14 RBI and 14 runs scored, Daniels added a perfect 4-for-4 on the basepaths in stolen base attempts.
Daniels played for CNU in two seasons and boasts a .338 average with 69 hits across 204 at-bats. Adding two seasons as an All-Region player at Wilson College, Daniels recorded nearly 200 career hits (194) with a near-.400 average (.399). That mark ranks in the top-25 in Division III and top-35 across all three NCAA levels among active players. Over his storied four-year collegiate career, Daniels has 125 career RBI including over 50 as a member of the Captains.
Honorable mention All-Conference players
Justin Liakos and
Ayden Stuffel close out the 2025 All-Conference honorees for CNU. Liakos played in 34 games making 31 starts while hitting .298 in 2025. His versatility proved vital for the Captains this season with 18 starts at second base, eight in right field, and four starts in left. The CNU senior blasted a pair of home runs and finished the season with ten extra-base hits. Stuffel started all 28 games he played in during his third season and ranked fourth on the team in hitting with a .330 average. He added seven stolen bases and finished the year with eight extra-base hits.
Led by the six All-Conference picks in the starting lineup, Christopher Newport is 20-17 overall heading into the Coast-To-Coast Athletic Conference Championship on Thursday. CNU will take on #2-seed Mary Washington at 11:00 a.m.
2025 Coast-To-Coast Athletic Conference Baseball Honors
Player of the Year: Dylan Winebrenner – Salisbury
Pitcher of the Year: Brendan McComber – Mary Washington
Rookie of the Year: Noah Burroughs – Salisbury
Scholar-Athlete of the Year: Burke Steifman – Mary Washington
Coaching Staff of the Year: Kelly Swiney – Mary Washington
| 2025 All-C2C Baseball First Team |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| NAME |
YEAR |
POS. |
TEAM |
HOMETOWN |
PREVIOUS ALL-C2C HONORS |
| Justin Ritz |
Sr. |
SP |
Mary Washington |
Centreville, Va. |
HM in '24, HM in '23 |
| Brendan McComber |
Gr. |
SP |
Mary Washington |
Hopewell, Va. |
|
| Tyler Villa |
Jr. |
SP |
Salisbury |
Marlboro, N.J. |
|
| Aidan Brinsfield |
So. |
SP |
Salisbury |
Salisbury, Md. |
|
| Bryce Sterling |
Sr. |
RP |
Salisbury |
New Castle, Del. |
|
| Connor Hassan |
So. |
RP |
Mary Washington |
Clifton, Va. |
HM in '24 |
| Dylan Winebrenner |
Sr. |
C |
Salisbury |
Frederick, Md. |
1st in '24 |
| Aaron Maxie |
So. |
1B |
Christopher Newport |
Mechanicsville, Va. |
|
| Danny Sheeler |
Sr. |
1B |
Salisbury |
Towson, Md. |
1st in '24, Player & 1st in '23 |
| Max Ehrhardt |
Jr. |
2B |
Salisbury |
Bristow, Va. |
|
| Josh Reinhold |
Jr. |
SS |
Christopher Newport |
Lewes, Del. |
1st in '24, Rookie in '23 |
| Jackson Inman |
Fr. |
3B |
Salisbury |
Damascus, Md. |
|
| Noah Burroughs |
Fr. |
OF |
Salisbury |
Millsboro, Del. |
|
| Jake Benedict |
Jr. |
OF |
Christopher Newport |
Glastonbury, Conn. |
|
| Bobby Ayscue |
Gr. |
OF |
Mary Washington |
Midlothian, Va. |
|
| Ty Lowe |
Sr. |
DH |
Mary Washington |
Fredericksburg, Va. |
1st in '24, 1st in '23, 1st in '22, 1st in '21 |
| Doc Daniels |
Sr. |
DH |
Christopher Newport |
Deal Island, Md. |
1st in '24 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| 2025 All-C2C Baseball Honorable Mention |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| NAME |
YEAR |
POS. |
TEAM |
HOMETOWN |
PREVIOUS ALL-C2C HONORS |
| Andrew Kell |
Sr. |
DH |
Salisbury |
Columbia, Md. |
Player & 1st in '24 |
| Cole Williams |
So. |
SP |
Salisbury |
Silver Spring, Md. |
Rookie in '24 |
| Josh Rivera |
Jr. |
RP |
Salisbury |
Leesburg, Va. |
|
| Matthew Boyd |
Jr. |
SP |
Mary Washington |
Bristow, Va. |
|
| Oliver Martin |
So. |
C |
Mary Washington |
Clarksburg, Md. |
1st in '24 |
| Noah Roots |
Gr. |
1B |
Mary Washington |
Carrollton, Va. |
|
| Ayden Stuffel |
Jr. |
OF |
Christopher Newport |
Suffolk, Va. |
|
| Justin Liakos |
Sr. |
IF |
Christopher Newport |
Chesapeake, Va. |
|
