February 24, 2022
Liberty 12
NC A&T 2
Record : 3-1
Liberty smashed North Carolina A&T 12 to 2 in a midweek matchup that saw the Flames trot out 7 total pitchers while the offense recorded 12 hits, 3 of which were homeruns. Freshman Garrett Horn got his first career start and sat 93-94 from the LH side in route to 3 scoreless innings with 5 strikeouts. Nick Willard came on for the 4th and got in a bases loaded jam before getting out unscathed thanks to a nifty play at first by Mathieu that cut a run down at the plate followed by a line shot to Foster at 2b that doubled off the runner on second. Jeremy Beamon would follow Willard and allowed the only 2 runs of the day on a Texas league single that hit off Foster's glove that was just out of reach. Beamon's breaking ball was impressive. Tim Miller made his Liberty debut and allowed 1 hit and struck 1 out in 1 inning of work. Landon Riley followed Miller making his own 2022 debut and had 2 walks a strikeout. Trey Carter came on in the 8th and was sitting 94 95 mph and had a strikeout and 2 walks as well. Dylan Cumming had the 9th and allowed 2 hits in his scoreless frame. Normally, I hate staff days but when you have the #dudecrew and 13 total guys that have pitched in 4 games it was enjoyable and the game still had good flow.
Offensively, Derek Orndorff stole the show with 3 louds hits including 2 homeruns and 2 stolen bases. The shot to left was a straight missile and the ball to center was majestic. He's a problem for any and everybody that the Flames play this year. Cam Foster also had 2 ringing hits and 3 RBI. Hill and Betts had 2 hits and 2 RBI as well. Gulakowski added a hit, RBI and 3 walks. Bo Majkowski came on to pinch hit for Keeter and singled to right in his first at bat as a Flame. Hillier also got an at bat late in the game for Betts.
Takeaways
Pitching - shocker, we have a lot of dudes. Midweek games at times can be miserable. We have seen P5's like UVA, UNC and Duke throw Johnny wholestaff days at Liberty the past few years and it was miserable as there was no flow. Yesterday had plenty of flow and even though a couple guys issued a few walks the pace was solid. The biggest issue will be to continue to be to find enough work for 13 quality arms to keep everyone sharp once the starters begin to lengthen their starts. I would look for some 5-6 inning starts this weekend.
Hitting - Orndorff is a 5 tool player. He certainly lengthens the lineup while he's hitting in the 7 hole but I'm not sure if the Flames can keep him down there long if he keeps mashing as this rate. Hill is showing to be another steady hitter that can handle the bat. Many folks panicked a bit when Barco was mowing down the Flames on opening night. Not many panicked tweets the last 3 games. Majkowski/Keeter will be the key. We know Mathieu will come around to at least hit for power. Even if he hits .220 but hits 15 homers and has an OBP in the .260 range and plays elite level defense he's fine. Liberty just needs Majkowski and Keeter to do a job at the bottom and play defense and this offense can be deadly.
Defensively - We didn't think it was possible to match the defense of 2020 but this team has made just 1 error and that was early in game 1 on Mathieu's throwing error. I don't know that we will lead the nation but don't be surprised if we stay in the top 10.
RPI - Yes, it's way too early for this to matter too much but Liberty is at 14 in the Warren Nolan RPI. Jacksonville is the next highest ASUN team at 39 as they are 4 and 0 after sweeping High Point and beating FSU in the midweek.
On Deck:
Liberty will meet former Big South foe Winthrop for 3 in Lynchburg this weekend. Winthrop comes in at #205 in the RPI and a 2 and 2 record after winning 2 of 3 against Eastern Michigan at home and losing 3 to 1 in the midweek against South Carolina. Winthrop at one time was a part of the 3 headed monster in the Big South that included Liberty and Coastal Carolina but they have faded in recent years. They still have a solid program and a very nice (sunny) facility. The Flames will need to play well.
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