Christopher Newport & Salisbury Survive Decisive Games, Advance to CAC Softball Championship

Christopher Newport & Salisbury Survive Decisive Games, Advance to CAC Softball Championship

Top-seeded Christopher Newport and second-seeded Salisbury bounced back from defeats by winning the decisive games of their respective pods to advance to next weekend's CAC Softball Championship.

CNU will host Salisbury in a best-of-three game series for the CAC title beginning next Friday in Newport News, Va. This marks the fourth time in the last five season that CNU and Salisbury will clash in the championship round. 

In Newport News, CNU fell to fourth-seeded Frostburg State 10-8 in Saturday's opening game, setting up a winner-take-all showdown with a spot in the championship round at stake. The Captains responded in the decisive fifth game of the CNU pod at Captains Park, downing the Bobcats 6-0 to clinch a spot in the championship for the fifth straight season. 

Grace Wild went 3-for-4 at the plate with an RBI and two runs scored in the decisive game for CNU, while Calah Savage went 2-for-4 with a home run and two RBIs and Saige Cisler went 3-for-3 with an RBI. Laura Kate Moss earned the win in the circle, going the full 7.0 innings and allowing just two hits with four strikeouts.  

In Salisbury, Md., third-seeded York downed Salisbury 12-0 in five innings in the first game of the day, setting up a decisive matchup for a championship berth. In the decisive fifth game of the pod, the Sea Gulls and Spartans went back-and-forth before Salisbury pulled out a 9-5 triumph. 

Deadlocked at 5-5 heading into the seventh inning, the Sea Gulls put up four runs in the top of the frame that proved to be the difference. The Spartans threatened with baserunners in the bottom of the seventh, but SU's Cat Ramagnano delivered a pair of outfield assists to close out the game and send the Sea Gulls to the title series. 

Annie Pietanza led the Sea Gulls at the plate in the decisive game, going 3-for-4 with three RBIs. Ramagnano went 2-for-3 with two RBIs and scored twice, while LeAnne Collins was 2-for-5 with two RBIs. 


2018 CAC Softball Tournament Schedule

First Weekend – Two Three-Team Pods at No. 1 Christopher Newport and No. 2 Salisbury 

Pod A (1, 4, and 6 seeds) - at Christopher Newport
Day 1 - Friday, Apr. 27
Game 1 - #1 Christopher Newport 14, #6 Penn State Harrisburg 4 (5 inn.)
Game 2 - #4 Frostburg State 7, #6 Penn State Harrisburg 3 
Game 3 - #1 Christopher Newport seed 10, #4 Frostburg State 0 (5 inn.)

Day 2 - Saturday, Apr. 28
Game 4 - #4 Frostburg State 10, #1 Christopher Newport 8 
Game 5 - #1 Christopher Newport 6, #4 Frostburg State 0

Pod B (2, 3, and 5 seeds) - at Salisbury 
Day 1 - Friday, Apr. 27
Game 1 - #2 Salisbury 7, #5 Mary Washington 1 
Game 2 - #3 York 6, #5 Mary Washington 0 
Game 3 - #2 Salisbury 12, #3 York 3

Day 2 - Saturday, Apr. 28
Game 4 - #3 York 12, #2 Salisbury 0 (5 inn.)
Game 5 - #2 Salisbury 9, #3 York 5 

Second Weekend - Best-of-Three Championship Series at Christopher Newport

Day 1 - Friday, May 4
Game 1 - #1 Christopher Newport vs. #2 Salisbury, 4 p.m. 

Day 2 - Saturday, May 5
Game 2 - #1 Christopher Newport vs. #2 Salisbury, 10 a.m.
Game 3 - (If necessary) - noon