SPORTS
MARCH 25, 2014
Liberty Champion/B2
Softball takes two of three games Lady Flames set their sights on East Tennessee State after winning their first series of the season Robert Seagears rseagears@liberty.edu
Jacob Tellers jtellers@liberty.edu
Jeremy Jefferson jjefferson3@liberty.edu
Liberty University’s softball team won two of three games against the North Carolina Central University (NCCU) Lady Eagles March 21-22. LU 9, NCCU 0 In the first game, the Lady Flames used great play behind the plate and in the field to notch a 9-0 win Friday, March 21. The Lady Flames were able to capitalize and score runs when they had players in scoring position, and they were able to get productivity from the bottom of their lineup. In the first inning, Liberty had two players on base, and senior infielder Sammi Shivock hit her first home run of the season to give the Lady Flames a 3-0 lead. Later in the third inning, Liberty was able to combine hits and take advantage of poor infield play from the Lady Eagles to get in scoring position. First baseman Hanna Nichols then drove in both players to give the Lady Flames three more runs and bring the score to 6-0. In the fourth inning, Liberty third baseman Megan Robinson hit a three-run home run, increasing the Lady Flames lead to nine runs. Annah Jo Brittingham pitched a complete game shutout, allowing only two hits and three walks. “It was great to know that my team was behind me giving me run production, and that makes me feel so much more confident in the circle,” Brittingham said. Although Liberty has had a tough season so far, Head Coach Dot Richardson explained that the goal in every game is for the players to get better. “(I want the athletes to say), ‘I want to be exactly where I am. I’ve got a passion for this game. I want to show the gifts that God has given me. I’m removing all doubt, and I am just going for it,’” Richardson said. LU 4, NCCU 0 Liberty lost 4-0 in the second game of
SWEEP continued from B1 In the bottom of the second inning, the Flames got on the board first with a line-drive single through the right side of the infield by Perritt, driving home Close from second base. One inning later, the Flames managed to take advantage of a lack of control from High Point starting pitcher Mike Krumm and a blunder from right fielder
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PRODUCTION — Liberty scored 16 runs in its three-game series against North Carolina Central University. the series. Although Brittingham was able to hold the Eagles to a shutout in the first game, she was not as lucky the second time around. While she recorded six strikeouts, she also gave up four runs off seven hits with only two team errors. “Being a pitcher, you have to be used to pitching a lot, being tired is not an excuse,” Brittingham said. “Some pitches did not work, and (NCCU) just started getting some hits.” Liberty had six hits in 27 at bats, while NCCU had seven hits in 28 at bats. While both teams had similar batting percentages, only NCCU was able to turn that production into runs. NCCU scored one run in both the second and third innings to take a 2-0 lead, which they held through the end of the fifth inning. Both scores came off Liberty errors, as NCCU took advantage of the Lady Flames early mistakes. A two-run home run at the top of the
sixth inning allowed NCCU to double its lead over the Lady Flames. After a single to center field by NCCU’s Emerie Germ, De’Onn Smith hit a home run past left field. With the bases loaded and two outs in the bottom of the sixth, first baseman Katie Han had a chance to cut into the Eagles lead. After a series of foul balls, she hit a grounder to third, resulting in a forced out to finish the inning. In the seventh inning, Liberty got runners to first and second with no outs, but three consecutive outs ended any hope at a come-from-behind Liberty victory.
Dane McDermott to score three more runs via a sacrifice fly from Close and a two-run double from Grauer. With one out in the sixth, Grauer hit a screamer toward the center-field wall, which was initially corralled by High Point centerfielder Josh Greene. However, Greene was injured as he dove face first into the center field wall, subsequently causing him to lose control of the baseball.
With Greene laying on the warning track, Grauer rounded the bases for an inside-the-park home run giving the Flames a 5-0 lead. “Rounding second, it was kind of tough to look out and see him kind of flat out as he was, but it was good to get around the bases at the same time, and I hope he gets healthy,” Grauer said. Greene was stretched off the field and taken away in an ambulance but was seen moving his arms and legs, giving the crowd a thumbs up while leaving the field. The Panthers had their best chance to cut into the Flames lead after loading the bases with no outs in the seventh, forcing Herndon out of the game and bringing in Fulghum. Fulghum was able to minimize the damage to just one run after forcing a double play then striking out the next batter. “(Fulghum) comes in, gets out of jams and just gets outs,” Toman said “… There was a momentum shift going on, and if he doesn’t get out of that, all of a sudden it becomes a close game.” The Flames capped off their scoring with three more runs in the bottom half of the seventh thanks to a two-run double from designated hitter Becker Sankey and a sacrifice fly from Close.
Courtney Russo | Liberty Champion
DEALING — The Flames held the Panthers to just six runs in the series.
LU 7, NCCU 5 In the third game, the Lady Flames got the bats going early and clinched a 7-5 victory. Liberty produced five runs in the first innings and jumped out to a 5-3 lead. Senior infielder Grace Nordan was a force on the mound for the Lady Flames,
as she struck out five and only gave up two hits and two runs. Nordan notched her second victory as starting pitcher for Liberty. The Lady Flames scored a run in both the second and third innings, stretching their margin to 7-3. The only hits and glimpse of hope for the Lady Eagles came in the seventh inning as they connected at the plate and scored two runs to end the drought. The strong focus of the Lady Flames allowed them to withstand a comeback attempt by NCCU. The Lady Flames will host a doubleheader against East Tennessee State Wednesday, March 26 at 2 and 4 p.m. SEAGEARS is a sports reporter. TELLERS is a sports reporter. JEFFERSON is a sports reporter. Liberty 4, High Point 1 The Flames completed the three-game sweep of the Panthers thanks to a dominant performance out of the pen from reliever Shawn Clowers. Clowers, who would later be named Big South Co-Pitcher of the Week, pitched 4 2/3 innings of shutout baseball, striking out six and improving his record to 3-0. Liberty wasted no time getting runs across with two in the first inning. Sankey drove home the first on a sacrifice fly, scoring Shepherd, who reached on an infield single. Seiz scored later in the inning, as he advanced home on a throw to second after Britt attempted to steal. The Panthers responded in the third, cutting the Flames lead in half with an RBI groundout from catcher Spencer Angelis. Liberty plated a lone run in the fifth and seventh innings to ensure its fourth straight victory. The Flames will stay in Lynchburg to take on the Virginia Tech Hokies Tuesday, March 25 at 6 p.m. LEASURE is the editor-in-chief. FOOTE is the asst. sports editor.