NEWPORT NEWS, Va. – The top-ranked Salisbury University softball team ran up against a tall challenge against its Coast-to-Coast Athletic Conference (C2C) rival, dropping a pair of games to the seventh-ranked Christopher Newport Captains on Saturday at Captains Park. CNU took the opener 4-1 and followed it up by edging out a 3-2 victory in the nightcap.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
GAME ONE

• The Sea Gulls landed the first blow in the top of the second inning. Lauren Meyers doubled and Camille Jones came in to pinch hit. After Jones took third on a flyout, Emily Stockman pegged an RBI single to left center to put SU up 1-0.
• Katie Currin led off the home second with a solo home run to right to knot it up. Then with one out and two on after a walk and a single, Kendall Bentley doubled both runners home to give the Captains a 3-1 lead.
• CNU tacked on an insurance run in the fifth as Brooke Greaver tagged her own solo blast to right center, moving the Captain margin up to 4-1, where it would stay to the final out.

SALISBURY GAME NOTES

• Emily Stockman finished 1-for-3 with an RBI.
• Lauren Meyers went 1-for-1 with a double and a walk, while Camille Jones scored the run after Meyers' two-sacker as a pinch-runner.
• Nicole Ortega (16-2) was tagged with just her second loss after surrendering three runs on five hits in 2.1 innings.
• The loss snapped the Sea Gulls' 29-game winning streak, its third-longest since the 2009 season.

CHRISTOPHER NEWPORT GAME NOTES

• Katie Currin and Brooke Greaver each went yard with solo shots for the Captains.
• Kendall Bentley delivered a big blow from the nine-hole in the form of a two-run double, finishing 1-for-3.
• Jamie Martin (10-1) completed what she started for the Captains, allowing one run on four hits across seven innings with two walks and eight strikeouts.

GAME TWO

• The Captains drew first blood in the first inning. Candace Slaw singled to lead off, stole second, and came home on a base knock by Katie Currin to make it 1-0 for the home side.
• Slaw sparked another CNU tally in the third by singling, stealing second, taking third on a sac bunt, and scoring on a Brooke Greaver RBI single to double the CNU lead at 2-0.
• The Sea Gulls made it a brand-new ballgame in the top of the sixth. Sam Flowers led off with a bunt single, then two batters later Abby Mace cracked a two-run home run to left, bringing SU even at 2-2.
• Jules Donnelly answered with a haymaker of her own, though, belting a solo home run in the bottom of the sixth to put the Captains back on top, 3-2.
• Reliever Jamie Martin finished the job from there, retiring SU in order in the seventh to secure the sweep.

SALISBURY GAME NOTES

• Abby Mace reached another milestone with her 60th career home run, going 2-for-3 with the two-run blast.
• Sam Flowers went 1-for-3 with a single and a run in front of Mace's dinger.
• Sydney Adolfson (6-1) endured a tough loss after giving up three runs on six hits in a complete six innings. Adolfson walked one and fanned seven.
• The pair of losses locks SU into the second seed in next weekend's C2C Tournament with a 2-2 league record.

CHRISTOPHER NEWPORT GAME NOTES

• Jules Donnelly finished 1-for-3 with the go-ahead solo home run in the Captains' final turn at-bat.
• Candace Slaw went 2-for-2 and scored twice.
• Brooke Greaver and Katie Currin each singled Slaw home once.
• Kate Alger (13-4) handled SU over six strong innings, scattering two runs on four hits with no walks and five strikeouts.
• Jamie Martin secured her first save with a 1-2-3 seventh, punching out a pair.
• At 4-0 in league play, CNU has clinched the top seed in the upcoming C2C Tournament.

UP NEXT

• The Sea Gulls will return to Newport News for the 2024 C2C Tournament beginning on Friday afternoon.
• The second-seeded Sea Gulls will open the double-elimination bracket against third-seeded Mary Washington at 2 p.m. The winner of that game will play top-seeded CNU on Friday at 5 p.m., with the loser playing an elimination game on Saturday at 11 a.m.

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Salisbury University is a proud member of NCAA Division III with primary membership in the Coast-to-Coast Athletic Conference, along with the New Jersey Athletic Conference for football and men's and women's swimming, and the Coastal Lacrosse Conference for men's lacrosse. With over 500 student-athletes in 21 varsity sports, SU is recognized as one of the most competitive intercollegiate athletics programs regardless of division, featuring dedicated coaches and staff that foster excellence on and off the field. The Sea Gulls have celebrated 23 team national championships, 24 individual national champions, 198 conference championships, and 45 Academic All-Americans.

To Make Tomorrow Yours at Salisbury University, and learn more about Sea Gull Athletics' tradition of excellence, visit www.SUSeaGulls.com or follow on social media @SUSeaGulls.