Liberty University
23-13, 9-3
Campbell
25-12, 8-7
A Season-High 17 Hits Power Liberty Past Campbell, 10-2
4/12/2015 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
Four Liberty Flames collected three hits each as the Flames banged out a season-high 17 en route to 10-2 victory over the Campbell Camels, Sunday afternoon at Liberty Baseball Stadium. With the victory, Liberty takes the Big South series, 2-1.
The contest was televised nationally ESPNU, the first nationally televised game at Liberty Baseball Stadium.
Center fielder Ashton Perritt posted his second straight three-hit game and drove in a game-high three runs for the Flames.
Third baseman Sammy Taormina also had three hits, including his first home run of the year, while designated hitter Andrew Yacyk and second baseman Clay Keranen each contributed three hits and scored twice in the contest.
First baseman Alex Close hit his third home run of the season for Liberty.
The Flames move to 9-3 in Big South action and 23-13 overall. Campbell drops to 8-7 in conference and 25-12 overall.
Liberty scored in every inning from the second through the seventh, building a commanding advantage.
Campbell held a short-lived 1-0 edge, plating the game's first run in its first at bat of the afternoon. Center fielder Cedric Mullins led off the contest with a double. Two batters later, first baseman Kyle Leady singled for a 1-0 advantage.
Liberty tied the contest in the second. Yacyk and left fielder Josh Close collected back-to-back, one-out singles. Two batters later, Perritt singled back through the middle of the infield, scoring Yacyk to knot the game at 1-1.
In the third, the Flames used five hits and two Camels errors to take the lead with three runs. With one out, right fielder Will Shepherd lined a tripled to the bottom of the left-center field wall and scored when Campbell shortstop Dustin Krob's throw to third sailed into the Liberty dugout. After Taormina followed with a single, Yacyk ripped a RBI double into the right field to give Liberty a 3-1 advantage. Josh Close then dropped a RBI single into center field for a 4-1 lead.
Both teams scored runs in the fourth. A RBI single by second baseman Drew Bulter in the top of the inning drew the Camels to within two at 4-2, only to see Liberty answer with two runs in the bottom of the inning. With shortstop Dalton Britt aboard, Alex Close belted a home run, upping the Liberty advantage to 6-2.
The Flames extended their lead with single runs in the fifth and the sixth innings. In the fifth, a RBI double by Perritt plated Keranen. In the sixth, Taormina connected for a solo home run for an 8-2 advantage.
Liberty capped the scoring in the seventh. After a single by Keranen, Perritt tripled to make it, 9-2. Britt followed with a RBI ground out for what proved to be the final score of 10-2.
Shawn Clowers moves to 8-2 on the season. Tied for the national lead in wins, Clowers allowed two runs on eight hits over the first six innings. He struck out two and walked one batter.
Grant Yost drops to 3-4. The right-hander gave up three runs on six hits over 2 1/3-plus innings. He struck out two and walked two batters.
Campbell had 11 hits in the game.
Liberty next steps out of conference play, Tuesday. The Flames will host the No. 16 Maryland Terrapins at Liberty Baseball Stadium. Game time is scheduled for 4 p.m.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Clowers, Shawn (8-2)
L: YOST, Grant (3-4)
Batting:
2B: MULLINS, Cedric 1
RBI: LEADY, Kyle 1 ; BUTLER, Drew 1
SH: LEONARD, Steven 1 ; KROB, Dustin 1
Base Running:
RUNS: MULLINS, Cedric 1 ; HALLUM, Cole 1
HBP: HALLUM, Cole 2
Batting:
2B: Perritt, Ashton 1 ; Yacyk, Andrew 1
3B: Perritt, Ashton 1 ; Shepherd, Will 1
HR: Close, Alex 1 ; Taormina, Sammy 1
RBI: Perritt, Ashton 3 ; Britt, Dalton 1 ; Close, Alex 2 ; Taormina, Sammy 1 ; Yacyk, Andrew 1 ; Close, Josh 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Perritt, Ashton 1 ; Britt, Dalton 1 ; Close, Alex 1 ; Shepherd, Will 1 ; Taormina, Sammy 2 ; Yacyk, Andrew 2 ; Keranen, Clay 2
SB: Britt, Dalton 1
