Score: Christopher Newport University 6, Elmira College 5 (11 Inn.)
Records: Christ. Newport (4-4), Elmira (0-1)
Location: Newport News, Va. - Captains Park

ELMIRA, N.Y. -- The Captains of Christopher Newport University earned a 6-5 victory over the Elmira College baseball team on a walk-off walk in the bottom of the 11th inning in the 2017 season opener on Tuesday afternoon.

After the first two batters reach via a hit-by-pitch and a bunt single, second-year reliever Nick Cottone '19 fanned CNU's A.J. Nicely for the first out of the 11th. Looking to set up an inning-ending double play, Cottone intentionally walked the following batter. However, with the bases loaded, he issued the game-winning free pass to Austin Henry on four pitches.

Christopher Newport looked to be in control of the game from the start, as the Captains grabbed a four-run lead in the bottom of the first. Three of those runs were plated on a bases-clearing double from Keith Roberts, who later came around to score on a wild pitch. However, Elmira starter Nick Sampogna '18 quickly found his groove and hurled six consecutive shutout innings to keep the Soaring Eagles in the game. He surrendered just one hit from the second to the seventh inning and recorded the first out in the eighth, before being lifted in favor of Andy Reed '19.

With Sampogna dealing, the Soaring Eagles exploded for five runs in the sixth and seventh runs to turn a four-run deficit into a 5-4 lead. Freshman Tommy Fogarty '20 walked to lead off the sixth and came around to score from second on a Conor Bawiec '18 single up the middle. A dropped fly ball by the Christopher Newport right fielder then allowed Bawiec to touch home, followed by a run-scoring blooper into left by Matt van Muelken '18. In the top of the seventh, Elmira taxed CNU reliever Caleb Myers, who lasted a mere two-thirds of an inning, for a pair of runs on three hits and one walk. The inning began with base hits from Bryce Plante '18 and Hayden Rothenberg '17. The former scored on an error before Dylan Bellinger '17 drove in Rothenberg on a base hit to give EC the lead, 5-4. 

CNU's Roberts knotted the game in the bottom of the eighth with a one-out single to left, but Reed struck out a pair with two runners in scoring position to preserve the tie.

Turning Point
Reed helped Elmira escape a jam in the home half of the eighth by striking out a pair of Captains to end the inning. He then breezed through the next two frames by retiring the CNU side in order each time. Perhaps Reed's only mistake of the day was the pitch that hit Roberts, which put the eventual game-winning run on to lead off the 11th.

Inside the Box Score

• Elmira scored five runs on six hits and three errors.
• Christopher Newport tallied six runs on six hits and five miscues.
• Sampogna allowed five runs on four hits and three walks in 7.1 innings.
• Both Sampogna and Reed finished with three punch outs.
• CNU starter Ryan Powell surrendered a trio of runs and fanned a game-high nine batsmen.
• Thomas Packert earned the win on the mound with 4.0 scoreless innings.
• Packert fanned seven without giving up a hit or walk.
• Six different Soaring Eagles recorded one hit.
• Bawiec, Bellinger, and van Muelken each had one RBI.
• Fogarty and van Muelken had EC's only extra-base hits, as each hit a double.
• Roberts led all players with a 2-for-4 effort at the dish.
• Roberts scored two runs, including the game-winner, and drove in four.

News and Notes

• Elmira is 0-1 on the young season with the loss.
• The Soaring Eagles are 0-5 in extra-inning games and 0-3 in season openers in the program's brief history.
• Tuesday's game was the longest in Elmira history in terms of innings played. 
• Six runs are the fewest surrendered by EC in a season-opening game, while the five runs scored are the most by the Soaring Eagles in an opener.
• With one hit against the Captains, Rothenberg extended his consecutive game hit streak to 11 in a row, dating back to the 2016 season.
• With a walk, Dennis Rudolph '18 extended his on-base streak to a team-leading 13 straight games, also dating back to last season.
• While batting second in the lineup in his first game, Fogarty doubled in his first collegiate at-bat.

Up Next
The Soaring Eagles continue their southern excursion with three contests this weekend at the Armstrong Invitational, hosted by Methodist University in Fayetteville, North Carolina. Elmira opens the invite against the host Monarchs on Friday, February 24th, at 4:00 p.m.