Liberty University
24-12, 5-2
North Alabama
17-12, 5-5
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | Runs R | Hits H | Errors E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| North Alabama | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 1 |
| Liberty | 2 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | X | 7 | 9 | 1 |
Liberty Downs UNA 7-1 in Series Opener
4/10/2021 12:00:00 AM | Softball
Top Plays
Liberty opened up a three-game home series with a 7-1 win over North Alabama on Saturday at Kamphuis Field at Liberty Softball Stadium.
The Lady Flames improve to 24-12 on the season, including 5-2 in ASUN play with their third straight victory. Meanwhile the Lions (17-12, 5-5) dropped their third consecutive game.
Scoring Summary
Liberty – 1st INNING – Bishop homers, 1-0
Liberty – 1st INNING – Channell singles, Canetto scores, 2-0
North Alabama – 2nd INNING – Land singles, Latham scores, 2-1
Liberty – 2nd INNING – Howard homers, 3-1
Liberty – 3rd INNING – Howard doubles, Channell and Hodum score, 5-1
Liberty – 4th INNING – Bishop-Riley homers, 6-1
Liberty – 6th INNING – Griffin grounds out, Bishop scores, 7-1
Notable Numbers
- Liberty outhit UNA 9-3, with five out of the Lady Flames' hits going for extra bases. Both teams registered one error. All three of the Lions' hits came during the second inning.
- Emily Kirby (7-4) earned the win, striking out nine and walking three while allowing one run on three hits in the complete-game effort. Kirby struck out three batters in the fourth inning, retiring the final 10 batters she faced.
- Macy Birdyshaw (4-2) drew the loss, yielding five runs on four hits, walking three and striking out two in 2 1/3 innings pitched. Alyssa Drogemuller (2 2/3 innings) and Olivia DePew (one inning) allowed one run each in relief.
- Liberty tied a season high with three homers, including one each from Autumn Bishop, Amber Bishop-Riley and Devyn Howard. Howard went 2-for-3 with a double, homer, three RBI and one run scored.
Turning Point
- Liberty jumped out to a 2-0 lead with a two-run first inning, as Bishop hit a leadoff homer and Channell later came through with an RBI single.
- The Lions narrowed the deficit to 2-1 on Georgia Land's RBI single in the top of the second, as UNA strung together three straight hits to start the inning. However, Kirby shut the door, retiring the next three batters.
- The Lady Flames pulled away, scoring five unanswered runs to earn the 7-1 win.
Beyond the Box Score
- Liberty and North Alabama are now tied 2-2 all-time in their softball series.
- North Alabama is the first team from the state of Alabama to play a game at Liberty Softball Stadium since its opening in 2015. Teams from 21 different states and the District of Columbia have now played at Liberty Softball Stadium.
- Liberty got off to a 2-0 start after one inning for the third game in a row. The Lady Flames are 20-4 this season when scoring first, and 15-1 when scoring in the first inning.
- Bishop homered to lead off a game for the sixth time in her career and second in the last three games.
- Bishop homered for the third game in a row. She has now posted her highest single-season homer total, with nine. Her previous career high was eight home runs, in 2018.
- On National Sibling Day, twins Amber Bishop-Riley and Autumn Bishop both homered. It was the seventh time in their careers that both Bishop twins homered in the same game.
- Howard is now 6-for-10 in ASUN games this season, with four doubles and one homer against conference opponents.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Kirby, Emily (7-4)
L: M. Birdyshaw (4-2)
Batting:
RBI: G. Land 1
Base Running:
RUNS: E. Latham 1
Batting:
2B: Howard, Devyn 1 ; Via, Madison 1
HR: Bishop, Autumn 1 ; Bishop-Riley, Amber 1 ; Howard, Devyn 1
RBI: Bishop, Autumn 1 ; Bishop-Riley, Amber 1 ; Griffin, Denay 1 ; Channell, Savannah 1 ; Howard, Devyn 3
SH: Sweat, Emily 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Bishop, Autumn 2 ; Bishop-Riley, Amber 1 ; Canetto, Kara 1 ; Hodum, Megan 1 ; Channell, Savannah 1 ; Howard, Devyn 1
SB: Canetto, Kara 1 ; Hodum, Megan 1
CS: Hodum, Megan 1
HBP: Bishop, Autumn 1 ; Bishop-Riley, Amber 1
