NEWPORT NEWS, Va. -- For the second straight game, the Christopher Newport baseball team scored in double figures as the Captains pulled ahead early and added plenty of insurance late against Hampden-Sydney College (6-4) on Monday, winning 17-3. The Captains won their seventh straight behind another strong pitching performance by Jay Cassady (3-0), striking out 13 over 6.0 innings pitched. 

Cassady gave up a lead off home run on the first pitch of the game but quickly left it in the past by getting eight straight strikeouts. The run continued with 10 of the first 12 outs coming by way of the punchout. Cassady scattered six hits with just the one run allowed to put his team in position for the win. His 13 strikeouts on the day marked his third double-digit strikeout performance in four starts this season. 

The Captains got their sophomore starter the lead in the bottom of the first inning with a pair of runs to take a 2-1 lead. Taking advantage of a pair of walks by Scott Crosson and Justin Bowers, Daniel Elliott singled through the right side to plate the games first run and move Bowers up to third. Then, Kevin Mackmin grounded out to the right side to bring around the go-ahead tally. 

Both pitchers kept the opposing lineups off the board until the bottom of the sixth inning when the Captains blew the game open with a six-run inning. A pair of errors extended the inning for the CNU offense with Jonathan Fisher scoring first on an RBI double by Crosson. Mackmin added another RBI groundout for the second out of the inning and then the Captains raced two runs across on wild pitches. Rounding out the inning with a two-run double into right field, Drew Caroline set in Alec Reilly and Kyle Schofield for the Captains. By the end of the frame, CNU had scored six runs on two hits and two errors to take an 8-1 lead. 

Four more runs would come in during the bottom of the seventh as the lead continued to cushion. Crosson led off with his second double of the day and capped a 3-for-3 performance with a pair of walks as he reached in all four of his plate appearances. Bowers singled and Mackmin continued his stellar day with a two-run single through the right side. After another error, the Captains scored an unearned run on a wild pitch. As head coach John Harvell turned to the bench, pinch hitter Michael Martorano capped the seventh-inning scoring with a laser to left field for a run-scoring single. 

The pace of the game labored in the late innings as both teams worked their way around the lineup. In the top of the eighth, Hampden-Sydney scored twice against rookie pitcher Colin D'Arcy, athough both runs were unearned. D'Arcy struck out the first batter he faced and then gave up a single and an error. After another strikeout, Tillman Butler delivered an RBI single followed by an infield single by Trent Jones. A slow roller to short ended the comeback bid at just two runs scored with Christopher Newport holding a 12-3 advantage. 

Finally, in the bottom of the eighth, the Captains tacked on five more runs on four hits. The biggest blow came off the bat of junior infielder Eric Lingebach as the veteran left the yard for the first time in his career. Lingebach pinch hit for Schofield and delivered a back-breaking three-run blast over the right field wall on the first pitch he saw. Getting on in front of him were Cameron Wallace and Brayden Hodges with back-to-back walks. 

Two batters later, Grant Hartman whistled a single into right field and advanced to third on a double to the gap by Ethan Weaver. Martorano added his second RBI single with a hard-hit bouncer up the middle and the final run came in on an error as Weaver raced across for the 17th run scored by CNU. 

Crosson and Martorano finished the day with multi-hit performances for the Captains at the top of the lineup. Bowers and Crosson each scored three times while Hodges and Schofield also scored twice. Mackmin's four RBI led the day while Lingebach's dinger gave him three and Caroline added a pair. 

Christopher Newport is slated to play at Bridgewater College on Wednesday, March 9 with first pitch scheduled for 3:00 pm.