Liberty Baseball opened the 2026 season in Charleston, South Carolina, this weekend, taking on the Citadel Bulldogs in a three-game series. The Flames defeated the Bulldogs in two out of three games to begin the season with a series win.
Friday: Liberty 7, The Citadel 3
Liberty began the 2026 season with an Opening Day win in South Carolina. Preseason CUSA Pitcher of the Year Ben Blair proved why he was awarded that honor in the Flames’ win. Blair allowed just one hit over six scoreless innings, striking out eight and issuing no walks, including getting out of a bases-loaded jam early in the game. Blair now owns back-to-back season-opening wins for Liberty.
After a Tanner Marsh infield hit kept the Flames alive with two outs in the third inning, a Riley DeCandido two-run blast opened the scoring for the Flames in 2026. Dylan Gabrowski added two runs the next inning off a single, and in the 5th, Tanner Marsh would score off a sac fly, and Nick Barone followed with another two-run tater that ballooned Liberty’s lead to 7-0. The Bulldogs would score three runs in the final two innings to make the Flames nervous, but Josh McCusker would close out any hope the Bulldogs had with two strikeouts in the 9th to clinch the opening win for Liberty.
Saturday: Liberty 3, The Citadel 4
The Flames dropped a close one in Game 2 on Saturday. The Citadel struck first with a two-run second inning and held that lead deep into the game as both pitching staffs kept offenses quiet. The Flames finally broke through in the fourth when Jordan Jaffe lifted a sacrifice fly to score Nick Barone and cut the deficit to 2-1.
Neither team would score again until the eighth inning, when Barone hit an RBI double to tie the game, but the Bulldogs would score two runs in the bottom of the inning to re-take the lead. Liberty would make things interesting in the last inning, as Tanner Marsh brought home Dylan Grabowski on a fielder’s choice after Grabowski doubled to start the inning, and Marsh followed that by stealing second base. However, the Bulldogs would end Liberty’s comeback bid as DeCandido was struck out looking, and Ryan Drumm flew out to end the game.
Sunday: Liberty 5, The Citadel 4
Liberty ended their stay in Charleston with a series win, as the Flames won the rubber match on Sunday afternoon. Liberty opened the scoring Sunday afternoon thanks to a Jordan Jaffe triple, followed by an Easton Swofford fielder’s choice that put the Flames up 2-0 midway through the second inning. The Bulldogs would equalize the score in the bottom of the inning, scoring their second run on one of Liberty’s four errors on the day. The Citadel would add two more runs in the bottom of the fifth inning, as the danger of dropping the opening series became a scary reality for the Flames.
Liberty never wavered, slowly chipping away at the Bulldogs lead. In the sixth, Liberty cut the lead to one on a fielder’s choice, and in the seventh, a Jaxon Sorenson sac fly tied the ballgame. In the top of the eighth inning, Jordan Jaffe opened with a double and would later score on a Tanner Marsh sac fly, in what proved to be the game-winning run, as the Flames scored in their third consecutive inning. From there, Bradley Zayac took care of business. The ECU transfer threw four scoreless innings and struck out seven, including two in the ninth to finish off the Bulldogs, recording his first win as a Liberty Flame.
This marks the third consecutive series opener that the Flames have won, dating back to the 2024 season. Liberty’s pitching staff impressed with their depth, recording 22 strikeouts in the final two games combined, not even including their Game 1 win, where ace Ben Blair recorded eight by his lonesome. Defense poses a slight concern, however, as Liberty recorded ten errors in the opening series. Offensively, Liberty proved they can win both with power and by playing “small ball.” The Flames can score in bunches, and with nineteen base runners left stranded in their final two games of the series, there’s hope that the Flames can score even more consistently in future games.
UP NEXT: Liberty returns to Lynchburg for a three-game homestand with West Virginia (3-0), out of the Big 12. The Mountaineers are fresh off a three-game sweep to open the season against Georgia Southern and an NCAA Super Regional appearance last season. First pitch is set for Friday, February 20th at 4:00 PM. You can watch the entire series on ESPN+.
