NEWPORT NEWS, Va. -- In a pair of games shortened by the 10-run mercy rule after seven innings, the nationally-ranked Christopher Newport baseball team put together an offensive explosion against St. Joseph's (Brooklyn) on Saturday afternoon. The Captains (22-6) scored 23 runs in the twin bill, played following a special pre-game ceremony by the Medina14 Foundation created in the memory of CNU alum Ricky Medina, who lost his battle with brain cancer earlier this year. 

Prior to the game, the Medina14 Foundation presented a check to Christopher Newport athletics for over $62,000 to establish the Ricky Medina, Jr. Memorial Endowed Scholarship and the Ricky Medina, Jr. Memorial Annual Scholarship. A 2005 graduate of Christopher Newport, Medina was a two-time All-Conference second baseman who helped lead the Captains to a national runner-up finish in the 2003 Division III College World Series. For more information on the Medina14 Foundation, visit the official website here. 

Christopher Newport blanked the Bears in the first game, 11-0, before adding a 12-2 win in game two. The Captains scored runs in all but three innings including multiple tallies in eight of the Captains' 12 trips to the plate. 

In game one, catcher Zach Dzarnowski led the way for the attack, driving in five runs including a no-doubt three-run home run in the bottom of the first to set the tone for the day. Scott Crosson added three hits and a hit-by-pitch while scoring three times while rookies Josh Reinhold, Jake Benedict, and Ayden Stuffel all added multi-hit performances for the Captains. 

Another freshman, Jackson Baird, took control on the mound with a dominant outing to pick up his fourth win of the season. Baird struck out eight and surrendered just two hits while combining with Nate Toomey for the seven-inning shutout. 

CNU scored three runs in the first on Dzarnowski's big blast to left field. Crosson and Reinhold led off with back-to-back singles before the Captains' backstop slammed the first pitch he saw into the netting in left field. 

In the second, Stuffel doubled to the wall in left field before Crosson swapped places with him with a double to deep center field. Dzarnowski stayed hot with an RBI single two batters later to plate Crosson for his fourth RBI. In the bottom of the fourth, the Captains' DH reached on a picture-perfect one-out bunt down the third base line. Reinhold doubled to right center to put two more in scoring position and again, Dzarnowski delivered with an RBI single down the right field line. 

The runs kept coming with two more in the fifth and sixth. With two outs in the fifth, Stuffel singled to left field to bring up second baseman Justin Liakos. Like his teammate, Liakos did not waste a pitch, jumping on the first toss he saw and ripping a line drive over the left field wall for his first career dinger. In the sixth, Alec Reilly and Jake Benedict went back-to-back with RBI extra base hits. 

After a short break between games, the Captains' bats did nothing to cool off as they scored five runs in the bottom of the first inning. Jake Benedict walked and Reilly reached on a HBP to set up a two-run double by Grant Hartman. The Captains' first baseman slipped a screaming grounder inside the bag at first base and it was off to the races for Benedict and Reilly, who each scored to kick off the 12-run outburst in game two. Next up was Daniel Elliott, who turned on a 1-0 pitch with a monstrous blast to right field for the Captains third homer of the afternoon. The damage wasn't done, however, as Ethan Weaver reached on a two-out double and Kevin Mackmin singled in the fifth run of the first inning. 

Two more would cross the plate in the bootom of the second on a single by Hartman and a sacrifice fly by Sam Benedict. Weaver also added a double in the inning. 

CNU was kept quiet for two innings before another crooked number in the fifth, scoring four runs to take an 11-0 lead. Weaver reached on a HBP and Mackmin singled through the right side, kicking off a run of four straight singles. Drew Caroline ripped a single through the left side to drive in a run, Gavin Spencer smacked an RBI single to left, and Jason Mendler fought off a 1-2 pitch to drive in a run with a single to right field. The last run of the inning came when Andrew Cheatham sacrificed a run in on a fly ball to center, plating Spencer. 

Rounding out the action at the plate was a massive solo bomb off the bat of Will Pellegrino in the bottom of the sixth, to give CNU a 12-0 lead. Seeing his first at-bat of the season, the sophomore catcher jumped on the first pitch he saw and unloaded an unforgettable missile over the fence in left field. 

On the mound, Brandon Cassedy improved to 4-1 this season with six shutout frames against the Bears. He gave way to Jackson Gimbel and David Gingras to close out the game in the seventh and the trio combined for 11 strikeouts. Cassedy punched out eight without issuing a walk and scattered five hits in the game. 

CNU and St. Joseph's (Brooklyn) will return to action on Sunday to wrap up the three-game series at Captains Park. First pitch is set for 11:00 a.m.