Liberty Wraps Up Regular-Season Schedule at Queens
5/4/2023 3:49:32 PM | Softball
Liberty (34-18, 16-5 ASUN) plays a three-game series at Queens (20-23, 10-11), Friday and Saturday to wrap up regular-season play.
The Stick Williams Dream Fields
Charlotte, N.C.
Friday, May 5
Liberty at Queens – 2 p.m. Live Stats
Liberty vs. Queens – 4 p.m. Live Stats
Saturday, May 6
Liberty vs. Queens – 2 p.m. Live Stats | Live Video (ESPN+)
• The Lady Flames took a five-game winning streak into Wednesday's game against No. 21 Virginia Tech. Liberty defeated No. 23 Central Arkansas and No. 6 Clemson during that span, also sweeping a home series from Austin Peay. The Lady Flames fell 7-5 to Virginia Tech after holding leads of 2-0, 3-1 and 5-3.
• Liberty is locked into the No. 2 seed for the 2023 ASUN Softball Championship, held at Stetson next week. The Lady Flames will open play next Thursday at 10 a.m. Liberty and No. 1 seed Central Arkansas are the only two teams who have clinched spots in the eight-team tournament heading into the last weekend of games. ASUN newcomer Queens is currently tied with Kennesaw State for eighth.
• The Lady Flames will move to Conference USA next season, so will wrap up its last ASUN games this month. Liberty is 71-13 (.845) all-time in ASUN regular-season games, winning 23 out of 28 conference series, including 20 3-0 sweeps. The Lady Flames have won the last two ASUN tournaments and will aim to be the first team since USC Upstate (2015-17) to win three straight ASUN Softball Championships.
• This weekend's series will feature two of the top pitchers in the ASUN. Liberty's Karlie Keeney is 11-3 with a 1.37 ERA in conference play, while Queens' Autumn Courtney leads the ASUN with a 1.04 ERA in conference games. In ASUN action, Queens (1.57) is second in team ERA, while Liberty (1.85) is third.
• On Monday, Rachel Roupe was named ASUN Player of the Week for the fourth time in her career and second time this season. She batted .500 with a double, triple, homer and six RBI. Roupe added a homer on Wednesday against Virginia Tech, giving her home runs in back-to-back games.
• Keeney (23-8, 1.94 ERA) is the ASUN leader with 23 victories (t-5th in NCAA Division I) to go along with five shutouts and is second among NCAA Division I softball pitchers with 212 2/3 innings pitched. Paige Bachman (9-8, 2.49) has thrived in an expanded role, tossing three shutouts.
• KK Madrey (.349) bats an ASUN-best .482 in conference play and has a team-leading 22 steals overall. Caroline Hudson (.323), currently on a 12-game hitting streak, leads the ASUN with 12 homers and 43 RBI (tied), while Rachel Roupe (.318) is second on the team in homers (9) and RBI (35). Rachel Craine (.312) has hit 12 doubles, while Devyn Howard (.301) is fourth in the ASUN with 40 runs scored. Megan Fortner (.292) has a team-leading 16 RBI in ASUN play, while Mary Claire Wilson (.287) has totaled five homers and 25 RBI. Sierra Kersten (.254) has batted .406 (13-for-32) in ASUN play.
