Liberty lost to Jacksonville State, 10-0, on Sunday afternoon in the CUSA Championship Game, getting run-ruled in seven innings. The Flames are 41-19 on the season and hope to secure an at large bid to NCAA Regional play.
The Gamecocks first got into the scoring column with a solo home run in the bottom of the second. They added a pair of two-run long balls in the bottom of the third to take a commanding 5-0 lead. This happened before Liberty was even able to scratch across a base hit. In the top of the fourth, Tanner Marsh led off the frame with a single, recording the team’s first hit of the contest. After Riley DeCandido was hit by a pitch and Nick Barone walked to load the bases, the Flames were unable to capitalize and did not scratch across a run, ending the team’s first credible threat of the ball game. In the bottom of the fifth, Jax State scored three more runs to take an 8-0 lead. Sam Richardson hit a two-run homer in the bottom of the seventh to make it 10-0 and finish the contest.
Making just his fifth start of the season, Liberty’s Josh Swink gave up seven runs, four earned, on seven hits while striking out four in four innings. Jaxon Lucas allowed just one run on three hits in two innings of relief. The Flames were held to just three hits. Marsh, Kyle Hvidsten, and Easton Swofford recorded the only Liberty hits on the afternoon.
The Flames won Pool B as the 2-seed in this week’s tournament with wins over Sam Houston (10-4) and Louisiana Tech (6-0) on Thursday and Friday, respectively. The Flames then played 3-seed Missouri State in the semifinals with first pitch at 6:50 p.m. for a game that was originally scheduled for 2:30 p.m. Liberty led the Bears, 6-4, in the middle of the sixth late Saturday night when the game was halted due to rain and lightning. The contest was resumed at 10 a.m. on Sunday with the Flames picking up the win, 7-5, to advance to the program’s first conference championship game since 2022.
For the Gamecocks, the CUSA regular season champion won Pool A at 2-0, advancing to the semifinals against 4-seed Dallas Baptist. Jax State got a walk-off win with a bases loaded walk in the bottom of the ninth. The game concluded around 6 p.m. and the Gamecocks were able to wait while the Flames and Bears battled each other and the weather.
Liberty was unable to claim its first conference championship in CUSA, but the Flames have a strong resume that should see the team reaching NCAA Regionals for the first time since 2022. The Flames have won 40 or more games for just the sixth time in program history, doing so for the first time since 2019 when Liberty tied a school record with 43 wins. For the first time in its the ree seasons in Conference USA, Liberty posted an above .500 record in conference play with a 21-9 mark to finish second place in the league standings under second-year head coach Bradley LeCroy.
The 2026 NCAA Division I Baseball Selection Show will be broadcast on Monday, May 25 at 12:00 p.m. The 64-team tournament bracket and regional assignments will be revealed during the one-hour broadcast on ESPN2. Entering Sunday’s action, Liberty had an RPI of 32 and are projected to receive an at large bid to the NCAA postseason.
