Flames to Finish Regular Season at Middle Tennessee
5/13/2026 11:19:00 PM | Baseball
Series Coverage
Games:Â Liberty at Middle Tennessee
Location:Â Murfreesboro, Tenn.
Stadium:Â Reese Smith Jr. Field
TV: ESPN+
MURFREESBORO, TENN. - The Liberty Flames will face the Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders in a three-game CUSA series to close out the regular season Thursday-Saturday at Reese Smith Jr. Field.
Quick Hits
• The Liberty Flames will conclude their 2026 regular season schedule by traveling to Murfreesboro, Tenn., for a three-game CUSA series against the Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders, Thursday-Saturday.Â
• Liberty, 36-17 overall, enters the weekend with a 19-8 record in CUSA play and currently holds sole possession of second place in the conference standings. Depending on outcomes this weekend, the Flames can finish anywhere from first to fifth place in the CUSA standings, which will determine the seedings for next week's CUSA Baseball Championship in Kennesaw, Ga.
• With a 17-5 road record, the Flames sport the fifth-best road record in the country. Liberty swept a three-game series at New Mexico State, May 1-3, in its last road outing.
• Liberty head coach Bradley LeCroy is in his second season. LeCroy has led the Flames to a 66-44 record.
Out On the Road - 5th Best Mark in Country
• Liberty has posted a 17-5 record on the road this season. Currently, the Flames' road win percentage is tied for the fifth-best nationally.Â
• The Flames are scheduled to play 25 games on the road in 2026. This weekend's games are the final three regular season road games for Liberty.
• Liberty finished its regular season with a 10-14 mark on the road in 2025.
Taking 1 for the Team
• The Flames enter the week having been hit by a pitch 97 times. The mark is second in CUSA behind FIU, which has been hit 103 times.
• Liberty's total is the most for a Flames team in a single season since 2010. That year, Liberty was hit by a pitch 126 times, the program record.
• Outfielder Riley DeCandido and catcher Kyle Hvidsten lead the Flames, having been hit 18 times each. The two are four shy of tying David Benham's program single-season record of 22, which he set in 1998.
• DeCandido and Hvidsten are currently tied for second in CUSA in hit by pitch. New Mexico State's Boston Vest leads the conference with 21.
Marsh Joins 200-Hit Club
• With a single in the seventh inning of last Wednesday's game against Virginia Tech at Worthington Field at Liberty Baseball Stadium, Liberty shortstop Tanner Marsh became the latest member of the Flames' 200-hit club.
• Marsh becomes the 24th player in program history to collect 200 or more hits during his career.
• The junior, who has started every game of his Flames' career, enters the week with 204 career hits. He leads Conference USA with 78 hits on the season.Â
Blair Reaches 100
• With nine strikeouts against Louisiana Tech last Friday, right-hander Ben Blair reached 100 for the season. The junior has averaged 7.7 strikeouts per start in 2026.
• Blair's 100 strikeouts tie him for third on Liberty's single season record list. Benji Miller holds the record with 119 in 1998.
• Blair enters his start on Thursday with 236 career strikeouts. The total is currently fifth on Liberty's career strikeout list. Mike Brown (1994-97) holds the all-time career mark with 287.
• The right-hander leads CUSA and ranks 15th nationally in strikeouts.
Barone Breaks Out
• Nick Barone had quite the month of March. The left fielder hit a team-leading .348, driving in 17 runs and scoring 17 runs.
• Barone went 14-for-14 in stolen bases during March and enters the week tied for eighth in  CUSA with 17.Â
• Barone followed his March efforts by hitting .338 and posting an .735 slugging percentage during April. He drove in 27 of his 44 RBI in 17 games during April. 13 of his 23 hits were for extra bases during the month  - six doubles and seven home runs.
• The outfielder began April by blasting two home runs in the Flames' sweep at Western Kentucky, April 2-4.  On April 4, Barone belted a grand slam in the ninth inning to tie the game at 5-5 during Liberty's six-run inning for a come-from-behind 6-5 win.Â
•Barone also hit three home runs and had six RBI in Liberty's 17-7 win over Duke at Jack Coombs Field on April 14.
• For the season, Barone has hit .327 with a team-high 50 RBI and scored 44. He has hit team-leading 10 home runs and leads the Flames with a .587 slugging percentage. He has posted a 1.007 OPS.Â
• The senior is among the CUSA leaders in RBI (4th), hits (7th), slugging percentage (8th) and OPS (7th).Â
Games:Â Liberty at Middle Tennessee
Location:Â Murfreesboro, Tenn.
Stadium:Â Reese Smith Jr. Field
TV: ESPN+
- Thursday, May 14Â - 7 p.m. EST/6 p.m. CST -Â ESPN+ Broadcast Link
- Friday, May 15Â - 4 p.m. EST/3 p.m. CST - ESPN+ Broadcast Link
- Saturday, May 16Â - 2 p.m. EST/1 p.m. CST - ESPN+ Broadcast Link
- Thursday, May 14Â - 7 p.m. EST/6 p.m. CST -Â Audio Broadcast Link
- Friday, May 15Â - 4 p.m. EST/3 p.m. CST -Â Audio Broadcast Link
- Saturday, May 16Â - 2 p.m. EST/1 p.m. CST -Â Audio Broadcast Link
MURFREESBORO, TENN. - The Liberty Flames will face the Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders in a three-game CUSA series to close out the regular season Thursday-Saturday at Reese Smith Jr. Field.
Quick Hits
• The Liberty Flames will conclude their 2026 regular season schedule by traveling to Murfreesboro, Tenn., for a three-game CUSA series against the Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders, Thursday-Saturday.Â
• Liberty, 36-17 overall, enters the weekend with a 19-8 record in CUSA play and currently holds sole possession of second place in the conference standings. Depending on outcomes this weekend, the Flames can finish anywhere from first to fifth place in the CUSA standings, which will determine the seedings for next week's CUSA Baseball Championship in Kennesaw, Ga.
• With a 17-5 road record, the Flames sport the fifth-best road record in the country. Liberty swept a three-game series at New Mexico State, May 1-3, in its last road outing.
• Liberty head coach Bradley LeCroy is in his second season. LeCroy has led the Flames to a 66-44 record.
Out On the Road - 5th Best Mark in Country
• Liberty has posted a 17-5 record on the road this season. Currently, the Flames' road win percentage is tied for the fifth-best nationally.Â
• The Flames are scheduled to play 25 games on the road in 2026. This weekend's games are the final three regular season road games for Liberty.
• Liberty finished its regular season with a 10-14 mark on the road in 2025.
Taking 1 for the Team
• The Flames enter the week having been hit by a pitch 97 times. The mark is second in CUSA behind FIU, which has been hit 103 times.
• Liberty's total is the most for a Flames team in a single season since 2010. That year, Liberty was hit by a pitch 126 times, the program record.
• Outfielder Riley DeCandido and catcher Kyle Hvidsten lead the Flames, having been hit 18 times each. The two are four shy of tying David Benham's program single-season record of 22, which he set in 1998.
• DeCandido and Hvidsten are currently tied for second in CUSA in hit by pitch. New Mexico State's Boston Vest leads the conference with 21.
Marsh Joins 200-Hit Club
• With a single in the seventh inning of last Wednesday's game against Virginia Tech at Worthington Field at Liberty Baseball Stadium, Liberty shortstop Tanner Marsh became the latest member of the Flames' 200-hit club.
• Marsh becomes the 24th player in program history to collect 200 or more hits during his career.
• The junior, who has started every game of his Flames' career, enters the week with 204 career hits. He leads Conference USA with 78 hits on the season.Â
Blair Reaches 100
• With nine strikeouts against Louisiana Tech last Friday, right-hander Ben Blair reached 100 for the season. The junior has averaged 7.7 strikeouts per start in 2026.
• Blair's 100 strikeouts tie him for third on Liberty's single season record list. Benji Miller holds the record with 119 in 1998.
• Blair enters his start on Thursday with 236 career strikeouts. The total is currently fifth on Liberty's career strikeout list. Mike Brown (1994-97) holds the all-time career mark with 287.
• The right-hander leads CUSA and ranks 15th nationally in strikeouts.
Barone Breaks Out
• Nick Barone had quite the month of March. The left fielder hit a team-leading .348, driving in 17 runs and scoring 17 runs.
• Barone went 14-for-14 in stolen bases during March and enters the week tied for eighth in  CUSA with 17.Â
• Barone followed his March efforts by hitting .338 and posting an .735 slugging percentage during April. He drove in 27 of his 44 RBI in 17 games during April. 13 of his 23 hits were for extra bases during the month  - six doubles and seven home runs.
• The outfielder began April by blasting two home runs in the Flames' sweep at Western Kentucky, April 2-4.  On April 4, Barone belted a grand slam in the ninth inning to tie the game at 5-5 during Liberty's six-run inning for a come-from-behind 6-5 win.Â
•Barone also hit three home runs and had six RBI in Liberty's 17-7 win over Duke at Jack Coombs Field on April 14.
• For the season, Barone has hit .327 with a team-high 50 RBI and scored 44. He has hit team-leading 10 home runs and leads the Flames with a .587 slugging percentage. He has posted a 1.007 OPS.Â
• The senior is among the CUSA leaders in RBI (4th), hits (7th), slugging percentage (8th) and OPS (7th).Â
Players Mentioned
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