Christopher Newport and Penn State Harrisburg are both one win away from the 2019 CAC Baseball Championship Series as the league tournament got underway on Friday (May 3) with three contests taking place at each of the two pods hosted by Salisbury and CNU.

Each pod is down to two teams: No. 4 Penn State Harrisburg (2-0) & No. 1 Salisbury (1-1) in Pod A and No. 2 Christopher Newport (2-0) and No. 5 Mary Washington (1-1) in Pod B - with the winners of the pods meeting in a best-of-three championship series on May 10-11 at the highest remaining seed's home field. 

POD A
No. 4 Penn State Harrisburg defeated No. 6 Southern Virginia by a 13-5 count in the first contest on Friday (May 3). SVU took an early 2-0 lead before Bret Williams blasted a 2-run home run as he went 4-for-4 in the contest with three runs scored and four RBI. Zach Koroneos connected on a 3-run shot in the seventh inning as the Lions scored six times in the frame to put the game out of reach. Zach Gettys earned the win on the mound for Penn State going 5.1 innings with six strikeouts and three earned runs. 

Remaining in Pod A, top-seeded Salisbury picked up a 6-2 victory over No. 6 Southern Virginia to eliminate the Knights. Salisbury scored runs in the second, third, fourth and two in the sixth to put the game away. Jimmy Monaghan led the way for the Sea Gulls with three hits and drove in two, while Clayton Dwyer threw seven innings allowing two earned runs with six strikeouts to take the win.

In the final contest on day one, Penn State Harrisburg's Travis Van Houten tossed a complete-game 6-hit shutout allowing just one walk while striking out five battters. The Lions are 2-0 and are one win away from a spot in the CAC Baseball Championship Series. 

POD B
No. 5 Mary Washington handled No. 3 York (Pa.) on Friday by a 16-6 margin as the Eagles used seven runs in the fourth inning to break the contest open. UMW racked up 18 hits in the contest, including a grand slam home run off the bat of Stephen Johnston to put the Eagles up 8-1 in the fourth as they cruised to victory. David Lambertson also had a big game going 3-for-5 with four RBI.

In Game 2, CNU's Josh Husby moved to 9-1 on the year with a 7-inning, four-hit performance and one earned run with seven striekouts to just one walk. Ryan Grubbs went 3-for-4 at the dish with four RBI in the 8-1 victory to eliminate York.

In the nightcap, CNU scored in all but one inning to surge past Mary Washington by a 19-7 final score as the Captains moved to 2-0 in the tournament. Trey Hicks registered a 5-for-6 performance at the dish with a pair of home runs, drove in three with five runs scored. Nick DiNapoli also homered twice for CNU and drove in five to propel the Captains to victory.

2019 CAC Baseball Tournament Schedule
(all CAC Tournament games are 9 innings):

First Weekend – Two Three-Team Pods at No. 1 & No. 2 seeds

Pod A (1, 4, and 6 seeds) - at No. 1 Salisbury
Day 1 - Friday, May 3
Game 1 - #4 Penn State Harrisburg def. #6 Southern Virginia, 13-5
Game 2 - #1 Salisbury def. #6 Southern Virginia, 6-2
Game 3 - #4 Penn State Harrisburg def. #1 Salisbury, 5-0

Day 2 - Saturday, May 4 - IF TWO TEAMS REMAIN
Game 4 - #4 Penn State Harrisburg vs. #1 Salisbury, 11 a.m. 
Game 5 (if necessary) - Same teams as Game 4, 2 p.m. 

Pod B (2, 3, and 5 seeds) - at No. 2 Christopher Newport
Day 1 - Friday, May 3
Game 1 - #5 Mary Washington def. #3 York (Pa.), 16-6
Game 2 - #2 Christopher Newport def. #3 York (Pa.), 8-1
Game 3 - #2 Christopher Newport def. #5 Mary Washington, 19-7

Day 2 - Saturday, May 4 - IF TWO TEAMS REMAIN
Game 4 - #2 Christopher Newport vs. #5 Mary Washington, 11 a.m. 
Game 5 (if necessary) - Same teams as Game 4, 2 p.m. 

Second Weekend - Best-of-Three Championship Series at highest remaining seed

Day 1 - Friday, May 10
Game 1 - Team 1 vs. Team 2, 3:30 p.m. 

Day 2 - Saturday, May 11
Game 2 - Team 1 vs. Team 2, 11 a.m. 
Game 3 (if necessary) - Team 1 vs. Team 2, 2 p.m.