Liberty University
22-12, 4-2
Kennesaw State
14-17, 7-2
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | Runs R | Hits H | Errors E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kennesaw State | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 10 | 0 |
| Liberty | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 8 | 0 |
Liberty Walks Off With 3-2 Win Over KSU in Series Finale
4/3/2021 12:00:00 AM | Softball
Top Plays
Coach Richardson Postgame
Amber Bishop-Riley Postgame
Liberty senior Autumn Bishop began the first inning with a solo homer, and her seventh-inning sacrifice fly sealed a 3-2 win over Kennesaw State on Saturday at Kamphuis Field at Liberty Softball Stadium.
With the win, Liberty (22-12, 4-2 ASUN) snaps a three-game winless streak. Kennesaw State (14-17, 7-2) saw its five-game winning streak end. The Owls won this weekend's series by virtue of a doubleheader sweep yesterday.
Scoring Summary
Liberty – 1st INNING – Bishop homers, 1-0
Liberty – 1st INNING – Bishop-Riley homers, 2-0
Kennesaw State – 3rd INNING – Solorzano singles, Alexander scores, 2-1
Kennesaw State – 5th INNING – Solorzano doubles, Dickey scores, 2-2
Liberty – 7th INNING – Bishop hits sacrifice fly, Hodum scores, 3-2
Notable Numbers
- KSU outhit Liberty 10-8 for the game. The Owls stranded 10 runners on base, compared to four for the Lady Flames.
- McKenzie Wagoner (3-2) earned the win, tossing 2 2/3 innings of one-hit softball during which she walked two and struck out one. Liberty starter Emily Kirby (2 2/3 innings) and reliever Megan Johnson (1 2/3 IP) both allowed one run.
- KSU reliever Peyton Elzey (0-6) drew the loss, allowing one run on two hits, walking one and fanning three in 5 1/3 innings. Melanie Bennett gave up two runs on six hits in 1 1/3 innings pitched combined.
- Amber Bishop-Riley went 2-for-3 with a double, a homer, one RBI and one run scored. Devyn Howard batted 2-for-3 with a double, while Autumn Bishop batted 1-for-2 with a homer, sacrifice fly, two RBI and one run scored.
- KSU's Lexi Solorzano went 2-for-3 with a double and two RBI.
Turning Point
- Bishop and Bishop-Riley hit back-to-back homers to lead off the bottom of the first. The Lady Flames loaded the bases with three two-out hits, chasing Bennett. Elzey came on and retired Via, keeping the score at 2-0.
- The Owls scored once in the third and once in the fifth. With runners on first and third and one out in the fifth, Wagoner entered the circle in relief of Johnson and got the next two batters out.
- Elzey retired 13 straight batters before Howard's leadoff double in the seventh. Via singled, giving Liberty runners on the corners. After a strikeout, Bishop lifted a high drive to the warning track in right, more than deep enough to score pinch runner Megan Hodum on a sacrifice fly to end the game.
Beyond the Box Score
- Liberty is now 7-6 all-time against Kennesaw State in softball.
- This was the first time since April 17-18, 2015 against Coastal Carolina that all three games in one of Liberty's conference series has been decided by one run.
- Liberty's five walk-off wins this season are its most since posting a program-record six walk-offs in 2010. This was Liberty's first walk-off sacrifice fly in program history.
- The Lady Flames are 7-4 this season in games decided by one run.
- Today marked the ninth time this season that Liberty has scored the winning run in the seventh inning or later.
- This is the sixth time in their career that Autumn Bishop and Amber Bishop-Riley have homered in the same game, but the first time they have hit back-to-back home runs.
- Today was the first time in program history that Liberty's first two batters homered to start a game.
- Bishop homered to lead off a game for the fifth time in her career.
- Bishop-Riley's homer gave her a program-record 60 career home runs and 300 career hits.
- Autumn Bishop hit her 15th career sacrifice fly, extending her program record total in the category.
- Bishop is now tied with Ashley Williams (2005-08) for second in program history with 249 career hits, trailing only Amber Bishop-Riley.
Up Next
The Lady Flames will play at Virginia on Tuesday at 4 p.m. at Palmer Park. The game will air live on ACC Network.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Wagoner, McKenzie (3-2)
L: Elzey (0-6)
Batting:
2B: Solorzano 1
RBI: Solorzano 2
SH: Florence 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Dickey 1 ; Alexander 1
SB: Alexander 1
CS: Lopez 1
Batting:
2B: Bishop-Riley, Amber 1 ; Howard, Devyn 1
HR: Bishop, Autumn 1 ; Bishop-Riley, Amber 1
RBI: Bishop, Autumn 2 ; Bishop-Riley, Amber 1
SF: Bishop, Autumn 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Bishop, Autumn 1 ; Bishop-Riley, Amber 1 ; Hodum, Megan 1
HBP: Canetto, Kara 1
