NEWPORT NEWS, Va. (Release via CNU Athletics) – Christopher Newport University and Virginia Wesleyan University battled to an exciting finish Saturday afternoon, as the tenth-ranked Captains advanced to the NCAA’s National Finals with a 6-4 victory over the 13th-ranked Marlins. CNU, the defending National Champions, will defend its title in Marshall, Texas, with play scheduled to begin this Thursday, June 1st.
Head Coach Keith Parr called on junior Katie Currin to pinch hit in the sixth inning, and Currin crushed the first pitch she saw over the leftfield fence for a three-run home run. The blast broke a 3-3 tie and served as the game-winning hit as the Captains held on for the victory to capture the best-of-three Super Regional. Virginia Wesleyan had opened the day with a 5-2 victory over the Captains to force a third and deciding game.
Christopher Newport is now 31-11, and will be playing in the National Finals for the third time in program history, as well as second year in a row. Virginia Wesleyan’s season came to an end with a 39-13 record. The Captains and Marlins have combined to win four of the last six NCAA titles.
The day began with an outstanding pitching performance from VWU’s Emily Seale, who held the Captains to just two unearned runs in the 5-2 Marlins triumph. The Captains jumped to an early 2-0 edge thanks to the pair of first inning unearned runs as seniors Bianca Palmer-Scott and Nicole Apai came home on a mishandled grounder off the bat of senior Kensley Hess. The Marlins recovered and scored four times on five hits in the third frame to grab the lead for good. Seale improved to 16-6 by going the distance and holding the Captains to just four hits and no earned runs. CNU starter Jamie Martin suffered the loss after giving up five runs on eight hits, and is now 11-5 on the year.
After a 30-minute break, the squads returned to the field for the rubber game of the best-of-three series, and the ensuing battle lived up to its expectations.
The Captains got on the board first in the second inning, when junior Caroline Pollock tripled to right-center off Marlins starter Lauren Bible. The hit scored Hess, who had opened the inning with a single to left field. Pollock then came home on a bunt single off the bat of Palmer-Scott, and the Captains held a 2-0 edge. CNU would push the lead to 3-0 in the third when junior Brooke Childress recorded her second home run of the season, a two-out solo shot to left field.
Virginia Wesleyan would respond with an unearned run in the third inning, as sophomore Laci Campbell doubled off Captains starter Kate Alger to score senior Brooke Anderson to make it 3-1. VWU would then add another single run in the fourth, as freshman Olivia Knight singled home a run to cut the CNU lead to 3-2. The Marlins would even the game in the fifth with another single run, as Campbell singled home Anderson to tie the score at 3-3.
In the sixth, the Captains started a rally when Childress walked and Hess reached base on a bunt single. After a sacrifice bunt from sophomore Kendall Bentley moved the runners to second and third, Parr looked to the bench and called on Currin for the first time in the three-game Super Regional. The junior from Blacksburg wasted no time, jumping on the first pitch from Marlins reliever Emma Adams for her fifth bomb of the season to put the Captains in front, 6-3.
The Marlins would get a run back when junior Julia Piotrowski homered in the sixth, but Alger closed the game by holding Wesleyan scoreless in the seventh as the Captains punched their ticket to Texas with their 15th NCAA Tournament victory in 16 games over the last two seasons.
Alger, who was selected the Most Outstanding Pitcher of the Super Regional, improved her record to 16-5 with the victory. VWU’s Adams took the loss to fall to 8-5. Currin was chosen as the Most Outstanding Player of the series for her one swing that changed the course of the game and series.
The Captains will join fellow Coast-To-Coast Athletic Conference member Salisbury University in Texas. The Sea Gulls, the top-ranked team in the country, also advanced on Saturday with a Super Regional sweep over Lebanon Valley. Two other schools from last year’s final in Salem, Va., also have advanced to the eight-team field in Marshall, Texas, next week. Trine and Berry will return to compete for a National Championship. The other four heading to Texas are Coe, Rowan, Moravian, and Linfield.
Further information on the upcoming schedule in Marshall, Texas, for the Captains will be posted on CNUsports.com as soon as it becomes available.