Christopher Newport’s softball squad is one win away from its first national championship in 27 seasons as a program.

After gaining at at-large bid into the NCAA Div. III Tournament and rolling off four straight wins to win a regional tournament, the Lady Captains entered the eight-team national finals in Salem as the only non-ranked team in the bracket.

On Friday, CNU trailed 7-1 in its opening game of the tournament versus Eastern Connecticut St. The Lady Captains scored six runs in the last half-inning to tie the score and won it in the bottom of the eighth, 8-7.

Junior first baseman Maggie Farris (King’s Fork) scored one of two runs on the tying hit in the bottom of the seventh.

CNU beat ECSU’s three-time All-American pitcher Molly Rathbun. CNU’s eight runs was the most Rathbun had allowed in a game in her collegiate career.

CNU continued on to an 11-3 win against DePauw (Ind.) on Saturday, then a 9-7 win over Texas-Tyler Sunday.

In the first chance at clinching the championship, CNU (38-11) fell 6-0 to No. 1 Linfield (Ore.) (50-3) on Monday afternoon. Linfield held CNU to four hits.

CNU and Linfield play a winner-take-all final Tuesday at 10 a.m.

Norfolk State finished with a 3-2 mark and runner-up to Bethune-Cookman in the MEAC Baseball Tournament Saturday in Daytona Beach, Fla.

The Spartans fell twice to B-CC in the double-elimination tourney.

Senior leftfielder John Rasberry (Lakeland/Greenbrier Christian) was named to the All-Tournament Team to go along with his first team All-MEAC honors for the regular season. Rasberry finished the year hitting .372 with 39 RBI, 38 runs, four homers and 11 stolen bases.