DANVILLE, Va. -- The dangerous Captains lineup struck for 12 runs on 11 hits against Averett University (4-7) on Tuesday as the 23rd-ranked Christopher Newport baseball team played its first true road game of the season and won, 12-2. The Captains improved to 8-3 overall with the win as the top half of the lineup combined for nine of CNU's 11 hits. 

Christopher Newport played three games away from Captains Park in the D3 Showcase last weekend but those contests were neutral site matchups. On Tuesday, CNU served as the visiting team for the first time in 2026 and made themselves right at home at Owen-Fulton Field in Danville, Va. with runs in six of the nine innings played. 

The Captains jumped out to a 6-0 lead over the first four innings before Averett put two on the board in the bottom of the fourth. CNU scored twice in the fifth, sixth, and ninth innings to close out the impressive offensive performance as the Captains reached double figures in the run column for the fifth time this season. 

The bats got going early as Jake Benedict singled into center field to lead off the game. His first of three base hits in the game was followed by a one-out walk by Josh Reinhold and then Aaron Maxie loaded the bases by reaching on an error. That brought up Cameron Slough and the junior backstop delivered a two-run single into center field to get the Captains on the board in the first. 

In the second inning, CNU scored three more runs on two hits and an error. Macho Santiago was drilled with one out and Benedict followed with another single into right field. After Sam Benedict walked to load the bases again, the Cougars went to the bullpen. Unfortunately for the home team, the first pitch thrown by the reliever ran into Reinhold in the box and the senior shortstop picked up the free RBI with the bases loaded plunking. Maxie then lifted a deep fly to left field to plate another run and Slough came through with his second RBI single in as many innings. 

The Captains staked their rookie starter, Tommy Blackburn, to a 6-0 lead before the freshman encountered any trouble. The sixth run came around when Reinhold sprinted around the bases on a two-out RBI double by Maxie in the top of the fourth. Blackburn struck out the first batter he faced in the fourth and induced a groundball to get two outs in the inning. Averett rallied for two runs with two outs, however, before Blackburn got out of the fourth with a groundball to end the threat. 

In the top of the fifth, CNU got both runs right back on a big fly from rookie Logan Adams. The first career home run for the freshman right-handed third baseman came on a 2-0 pitch with a runner on first and gave the Captains an 8-2 lead. 

Reinhold and Maxie were in the mix again in the sixth as CNU scored twice more. Reinhold doubled nad Maxie walked before both runners moved up on a balk. A fielding error at second base allowed both runners to come around to score as the lead ballooned to 10-2. Finally, CNU scored twice more in the top of the ninth when Jake Benedict singled home Ashton Hylton and Sam Benedict drove in Creston Saunders. 

On the mound, the Captains bullpen had a stellar afternoon with five pitchers combining for five scoreless frames of relief. Senior Dylan Blazer was called on first and worked through a clean fourth while facing the minimum. Chase Hustead (1-0) earned the win with a pair of strikeouts while blanking the Cougars in the fifth. Then, Alex Shelkin and Nick Jones matched Blazer by facing the minimum in their respective innings, the seventh and eighth, before Connor Smith made his collegiate debut with a dominant ninth inning. The ball never left the infield against the rookie lefty with a liner to short, popup to the first baseman, and a groundball up the middle to close out the win. 

Both Benedicts and Slough finished with multi-hit performances for the Captains. Jake Benedict was 3-for-6 with an RBI and two runs scored while Sam Benedict was 2-for-5 with an RBI, run scored, and a walk. Slough drove in a team-high three runs while going 2-for-3 at the plate. 

Christopher Newport will return to action on Thursday, March 5 as the Captains are slated to travel to Eastern Mennonite University for a 3:00 p.m. first pitch.