NEWPORT NEWS, Va. -- Opening Day for Christopher Newport Baseball is set for Tuesday, February 10 as the Captains (0-0) host Eastern Mennonite University (0-0) at Captains Park. Both teams are ready to embark on the 2026 schedule starting with first pitch scheduled for 2:00 p.m.

For fans unable to attend in person, live stats and a live video webcast will be available at CNUsports.com. Admission to CNU baseball games is free. 

Christopher Newport, picked second in the Coast-To-Coast Athletic Conference Preseason Coaches' Poll, will look to build on a successful standard from a year ago by welcoming back a significant bulk of the roster from last season. CNU reached the conference title game and won 21 games a year ago while facing a challenging schedule. The Captains will return leadoff man and All-Region center fielder Jake Benedict along with All-State first baseman Aaron Maxie, the team's leading hitter from a year ago.

Benedict started all 39 games and ranked in the top-150 among Division III hitters with a .395 average. The only player in the league with a higher batting average in 2025 was his teammate, Maxie, who hit .411 in his sophomore season with one of the finest single-season performances by a first baseman in program history. He posted a top-ten batting average and ranked fourth in CNU lore with a .530 on-base percentage while driving in a team-high 44 runs.  

The veteran core includes Sam Benedict, an All-Defensive Team selection at third base, and Josh Reinhold, a four-year starter at shortstop. The two seniors have locked down the left side of the infield throughout their tenure with Reinhold establishing himself as one of the top on-base machines in the nation with at least one appearance on base in 113 of his 118 career games. Benedict has sprinted to the top of the sacrifice bunt chart at Christopher Newport and remains one of the most sure-handed bats in the lineup for the Captains. 

The pitching rotation includes returners Jackson Baird, Chase Hustead, Ryan Morrison, and Cooper Newell with all 39 starts from a year ago returning to the fold. Baird logged a team-best 3.88 ERA and Morrison finished the year with a 6-1 record. 

Eastern Mennonite also returns a large contingent at the plate with all but one of the primary field players back from last year's lineup. Overall, EMU brings back five players who hit over .300 last year including senior Erik Wilkinson after hitting a team-best .383 in 2025. 

Following the opener on Tuesday afternoon, the Captains will host Southern Virginia University for a doubleheader on Saturday, February 14 with first pitch of game one slated for 11:00 a.m.