Liberty (7-3) increased its win streak to five games after going 4 for 4 against its opponents this past week. The Flames earned a midweek victory over High Point before posting their first series sweep of the season against Hofstra. Behind timely hitting and continued production from the top of the lineup, Liberty outscored its opponents 39-14 to go undefeated during the week.
Wednesday: Liberty 9, High Point 3
The Flames used a four-run fifth inning to open the week with a win over High Point in their first midweek matchup of the season.
Matt Porter got the start for the Flames, throwing 3 scoreless innings with four strikeouts. Marsh opened the scoring up with a double that brought home Ryan Drumm in the bottom of the second. The fifth inning saw seven total runs as the Panthers took a 3-1 lead in the top of the fifth. Josh Campos tied the game with a two-run double, and Marsh followed with a two-out infield single to plate the go-ahead run as Liberty reclaimed the lead. The Flames added four more runs in the sixth, highlighted by a two-run double from Jaxon Sorenson and an RBI double from Ryan Drumm.
Marsh continued his hot start to the year, finishing 3-for-5 with two RBI and a stolen base, while Campos drove in three runs with two hits. Liberty totaled twelve hits in the contest, despite leaving thirteen runners stranded on base.
Five LU pitchers combined to limit the Panthers to just four hits while striking out 15 batters. Liberty’s Kaleb Smith earned his first collegiate victory in relief as the Flames improved to 4-3 on the year.
Friday Game 1: Liberty 7, Hofstra 2
Liberty’s ace Ben Blair continues to prove why he was Preseason CUSA Pitcher of the Year. The Gretna, VA native struck out a career-high twelve Hofstra batters over seven innings as the Flames took the series opener over the Pride.
Two Hofstra RBI doubles in the first and third innings, gave them an early 2-0 lead. Tanner Marsh scored on a Jax Sorenson sac fly and then DeCandido would later score on a throwing error as the Flames tied it up in the bottom of the third. From there on, it was all Flames. Marsh and DeCandido struck again in the fourth inning as both doubled home runs. Liberty would tack on three more runs over the next few innings to secure a 7-2 victory.
Blair finished his third start of the year, allowing two runs on two hits while walking two to improve to 2-1 on the season. Josh Swink pitched the final two innings without allowing a run, striking out five batters to earn his first save of the year. Blair and Swink combined for 17 strikeouts in Liberty’s win. DeCandido finished the game with a career-high three hits along with two RBIs in the Flames’ victory.
Saturday Game 2: Liberty 13, Hofstra 2
Liberty clinched a series win over Hofstra with a dominating Game 2 run-rule win.
After surrendering a run in the top of the first, the Flames answered immediately with five runs in the bottom of the first inning. Liberty blew the game wide open in the fourth, scoring eight runs to take a 13-1 lead. Hofstra would score a run in the sixth, but it would be too little too late as the Flames would win by run-rule in seven innings, 13-2.
Tanner Marsh continued to produce by recording two hits, driving in two runs, and scoring twice. Jaxon Sorenson added two hits, including a double, tacking on an RBI and two runs scored. Five different Flames crossed home plate twice in the victory.
N.C. State transfer Jaxon Lucas earned his first win in a Liberty uniform, allowing one unearned run over five innings. This outing marked Liberty’s highest-scoring game of the season and was the first time Liberty scored ten or more runs in a game since their 13-4 win against Virginia Tech in Blacksburg last April.
Sunday Game 3: Liberty 10, Hofstra 7
As the weather gets warmer, so do the Liberty bats, as the Flames erupted for six runs in the bottom of the eighth inning to complete a series sweep over Hofstra with a 10-7 victory Sunday afternoon.
Liberty went up 2-0 early, before Hofstra scored three runs to take the lead in the fifth. Liberty would tie in the bottom of the inning before Hofstra would regain the lead in the top of the sixth. A Nick Barone solo homer would tie the game again before the seventh inning, as that would end the back and forth. The eighth inning began with a Jaxon Sorenson homer, was followed by a bases-clearing double by Riley DeCandido, and was concluded with an RBI single from Dylan Grabowski as the Flames took a 10-5 lead. Hofstra’s bats would threaten in the ninth, plating two more runs, but the Flames would extinguish any further threats as Liberty would secure the Game 3 win, 10-7.
Tyler August earned the win in relief, allowing one run over 2 1/3 innings while striking out four. Tanner Marsh remained hot at the plate for the Flames. Marsh reached base four times with a single and three walks, scoring two runs in the third game. The Liberty SS has reached base in all 10 of the Flames’ games and is currently riding a five-game hitting streak. Liberty improved to 7-3 on the season and secured its first series sweep of 2026, getting revenge for last year’s series loss to Hofstra in Lynchburg.
UP NEXT: Liberty (7-3) will face the High Point Panthers on Tuesday night for a second consecutive midweek game (7-5). After suffering a 9-3 loss in Lynchburg, the Panthers rebounded with a 2-1 series win over Binghamton. First pitch will be at 4:00 PM in High Point, NC, and the game will be televised on ESPN+. Liberty will then host the Harvard Crimson (0-6) for another three-game homestand this weekend. Harvard is still seeking their first win after getting swept by both Tulane and Rice to fall to 0-6 to begin their 2026 season. The Flames and Crimson will open the weekend series at 4:00 PM this Friday. You can watch all three games on ESPN+.
