Liberty cruises into Big South title game

Published: May 24, 2008

Who knew a monumental beatdown could be so inspirational?

When Liberty’s shell-shocked baseball team trudged off the field Wednesday afternoon after losing by 11 runs to Radford in Game 2 of the Big South tournament at Dan Daniel Park, no one was sure how the Flames would react.

Relegated to the loser’s bracket, Liberty would have to fight its way through to Saturday, sans one head coach (suspended for a game after his second ejection of the season) and a large chunk of pride. Instead of moping, Liberty regrouped, and after two victories Friday, the Flames earned a third straight trip to the tournament’s championship round.

Liberty eliminated Radford 11-2 in Game 7 Friday morning and jumped all over a stunned Winthrop team in Game 9 in the evening, building a 12-run lead after four innings. Liberty handled the Eagles 15-3 and will face top seed Coastal Carolina today at 1 p.m.

“We decided after that first game, as bad as we were, that if we were going to go down, we were going to put everything we had into every game like it’s our last,” Liberty coach Jim Toman said. “We were going to leave it on the field. I told them we were going to be energetic, that we’d have a lot of enthusiasm and a lot of fun and that if we lost, at least we lost going down swinging. We haven’t lost yet.”

The Flames need to beat Coastal, which defeated Winthrop in Game 8 to remain unbeaten, twice to advance to the NCAA regionals for the first time since 2001. UNC Greensboro in 1998 was the last team to beat the same team twice to take home the title, defeating Charleston Southern. Winthrop in 1987 and Coastal Carolina in 1991 also pulled the trick.

“It’s going to be next to impossible,” Toman said, before pausing and smirking. “But we like that spot. If we can sneak by them in the first one, you never know what can happen.”

Liberty (34-25-1) has played dominant baseball since losing 15-4 to Radford in the opener. The Flames eliminated UNC Asheville, Radford and Winthrop in succession, outscoring the three teams 36-6.

The offensive explosion was important, but so was this fact: Two games, 18 full innings, two pitchers used. Dustin Umberger went the distance against Radford, holding the Highlanders to two earned runs on six hits. He struck out 10 and walked two. After struggling with his command in the first two innings, Clarence Nicely repeated the feat against Winthrop, limiting the Eagles to six hits and three earned runs. He struck out six and walked four.

Umberger and Nicely will be unavailable today, but those are the only two who are completely off limits. Ryan Page, who pitched seven innings against UNC Asheville on Thursday, might be available for an inning or two. David Stokes, Wednesday’s starter, is likely to pitch should there be a second game today.

Steven Evans, who a year ago was pitching for Amherst in the Seminole District tournament, will start the first game today. Coastal will counter with Austin Fleet, Chants coach Gary Gilmore said.

“We told them on the bus after the loss to Radford that we needed guys like Page and Umberger and Nicely to give us eight or nine innings and just leave it out there,” Toman said. “Every single ounce of energy you’ve got, just do it. Those guys stepped up big time. We’re set up OK for (today).”

Winthrop had just 45 minutes to regroup after losing 8-6 to Coastal Carolina in Game 7, “an emotional one,” WU coach Joe Hudak conceded. Still, the Eagles (26-34) jumped on top 1-0 on Aaron Bonomi’s sacrifice fly in the top of the second. Liberty’s Cody Brown erased that lead on the first swing of the bottom of the second, ripping a Wade Newman breaking ball over the left-field wall for a solo home run.

Liberty rolled from there. Garrett Young reached after being hit by a pitch and advanced to second on a balk. Aaron Grijalva drove in Young with a single. Jeff Jefferson hit a bloop single to left and Tim Rotola reached on a bunt single to load the bases.

Facing a 3-1 count, Aaron Phillips watched the next pitch hit catcher John Murrian’s mitt. He thought it was a ball and trotted toward first base, getting halfway there before realizing the pitch was a strike. Toman considering calling time to refocus Phillips, but he trusted the senior, and Phillips came through, ripping a double to the opposite field to clear the bases. Liberty led 5-0.

Thirteen Flames batted in the second inning and eight scored. They added four more in the third to push the lead to 12-1. Certainly, the 2006 Big South tournament title game crept into the minds of Liberty’s players in the dugout. The Flames led that game 10-0 after three innings before losing 16-11.

“We talked about it,” Brown said. “It‘s always in our heads. You never let up. Not after that.”
Jefferson, a freshman who played prep ball at nearby Tunstall, started in place of injured right fielder P.K. Keller, Liberty’s only first-team all-conference selection. In the three elimination games, he was 10-for-15 and recorded the Flames’ first five-hit game of the season, going 5-for-5 against the Eagles.

“He’d probably be doing the same thing if he was in there,” Jefferson said. “I don’t look at it as a great opportunity. It was a mishap that he got hurt. He’s a great player and a great guy.”

WINTHROP 010 001 100 — 3 6 1
LIBERTY 084 100 02X — 15 17 0
WP — Clarence Nicely (6-1). LP — Wade Newman (2-2).
Highlights — WU: Bryn Henderson 1-4, run, HR, RBI; John Murrian 2-3, run, HR, RBI. LU: Clarence Nicely CG 6 H, 3 ER, 6 K, 4 BB; Jeff Jefferson 5-5, 4 runs, RBI, SB; Cody Brown 3-5, 2B, HR, 2 runs, 3 RBI; Aaron Grijalva 2-4, run, 3 RBI.

RADFORD 000 020 000 — 2 6 3
LIBERTY 300 511 01X — 11 15 0
WP — Dustin Umberger (8-3). LP — Cassidy McDaniel (3-5).
Highlights — RU: Nate Toth 2-3, run, RBI. LU: Garrett Young 4-5, run, 2 RBI; Cody Brown 3-4, 2B, RBI; Aaron Grijalva 1-3, 3B, 2 RBI; Dustin Umberger CG, 6 H, 2 ER, 10 K, 2 BB.