NEWPORT NEWS, Va. -- Senior ace Sean Chitsaz set the tone for Christopher Newport University (32-4) in the 2011 USA South Tournament, as he hurled his first career complete game shutout and led the Captains to a 7-0 win over seventh-seeded Ferrum today. CNU advances to play #3 Methodist University tomorrow morning at 10:00 am.

Chitsaz was brilliant, giving up just four hits, including two seeing-eye singles, and he struck out five in the game. He was efficient, tossing just over 100 pitches in the shutout, and kept the ball on the ground, recording 13 groundouts.

Offensively, the Captains got going quickly behind a lead-off home run from Drue Vernon. Vernon stepped up in the bottom of the first and launched a shot to deep right-center to put CNU up, 1-0. Then, in the bottom of the second, designated hitter Steven Keener hit a laser deep to right for his fifth home run of the season, a two-run shot.

The Captains would tack on three more in the bottom of the fifth and another in the sixth, but Chitsaz had all the support he would need. He allowed only two baserunners to reach second in the game.

Rookie Billy Steel joined Keener with a game-high two RBI in the game, while Steven Lindemuth and Matt Shoemaker each added one. The four players hitting at the bottom of the order combined for 6 RBI, three runs and three extra-base hits. Vernon finished up the game with a 2-for-4 performance and a walk, driving in one and scoring two.

Ferrum got two hits from Ryan Easterly and a double from Eddie McGrath. Six different pitchers tossed in the game and a trio of rookies in Morgan Boles, Josh Motto and Brandon West kept CNU off the board in the final three innings of work.

CNU advances to play #3 Methodist University at the Burlington Athletic Stadium on Friday, April 15 at 10:00 am. Ferrum will face #6 North Carolina Wesleyan in an elimination game on the campus of Elon University at 9:00 am.