Friday, May 8
Newark, Del.
12:00 PM ET
Liberty University
29-27
7
vs
2
Jacksonville State
43-14
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | Runs R | Hits H | Errors E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Liberty | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 9 | 2 |
| Jacksonville St. | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 0 |
On To the Final, No. 3 Seed Liberty Downs No. 1 Seed Jax State 7-2
5/8/2026 3:08:00 PM | Softball
NEWARK, Del. – Two-time defending CUSA champion Liberty knocked off No. 1 seed Jax State 7-2 on Friday to advance to Saturday's winner-take-all final at the Conference USA Softball Championship at Delaware Softball Diamond.
The Lady Flames (29-27) push their winning streak to six games overall, while the Gamecocks fall to 43-14 on the season.
Jax State will compete in an elimination game at 5 p.m. today, with the winner advancing to the championship game to meet Liberty at noon tomorrow.
Liberty 7, Jacksonville State 2
Scoring Summary
Liberty – 4th INNING – Lee homers to left, Doerr and Norris score, 3-0
Liberty – 5th INNING – McManus homers to left, Whatley scores, 5-0
Liberty – 5th INNING – Carrasquillo sacrifice fly to center, Fonseca scores, 6-0
Liberty – 7th INNING – Jessee sacrifice fly to right, McManus scores, 7-0
Jax State – 7th INNING – Nowakowski doubles to right center, Cushingberry advances, Underwood and Peters score, 7-2
Turning Point
Liberty advances to the winner-take-all final of the 2026 CUSA Softball Championship, tomorrow at noon. The opponent is to be determined, as two games remain today. The winner of tomorrow's title game earns an automatic berth to the 2026 NCAA Division I Softball Championship.
The Lady Flames (29-27) push their winning streak to six games overall, while the Gamecocks fall to 43-14 on the season.
Jax State will compete in an elimination game at 5 p.m. today, with the winner advancing to the championship game to meet Liberty at noon tomorrow.
Liberty 7, Jacksonville State 2
Scoring Summary
Liberty – 4th INNING – Lee homers to left, Doerr and Norris score, 3-0
Liberty – 5th INNING – McManus homers to left, Whatley scores, 5-0
Liberty – 5th INNING – Carrasquillo sacrifice fly to center, Fonseca scores, 6-0
Liberty – 7th INNING – Jessee sacrifice fly to right, McManus scores, 7-0
Jax State – 7th INNING – Nowakowski doubles to right center, Cushingberry advances, Underwood and Peters score, 7-2
Turning Point
- Liberty broke through in a pitchers' duel in the fourth inning, with Dani Lee hitting a three-run homer to left for a 3-0 lead.
- Jax State loaded the bases on two hit batters and a walk in the fourth, but Camden Anders stranded all three. Anders' no-hitter was broken in the sixth.
- The Lady Flames added three more in the top of the fifth, on a two-run homer by Brynn McManus and Alexia Carrasquillo sacrifice fly.
- The Gamecocks scored their only runs of the game on a two-run double by Morgan Nowakowski in the seventh, but Anders shut them down from that point.
- Liberty outhit Jax State 9-2 for the game, with the Lady Flames committing two errors. The Gamecocks left eight runners on base, while Liberty stranded four.
- Camden Anders (15-6) earned the win for the third day in a row. She allowed two runs, one earned, on two hits, walking four, hitting two and tying her career high with eight strikeouts.
- Jax State's Makenna Moore (16-2) drew the loss, allowing four runs on five hits, walking two and striking out one in four innings before giving way to Jaliyah Holmes and Mackinley Portillo.
- Dani Lee went 2-for-3 with a homer, three RBI and one run scored, while Brynn McManus batted 2-for-4 with a triple, homer, two RBI and two runs scored. Paige Doerr and Savanah Whatley both went 2-for-3 with one run scored.
- Morgan Nowakowski batted 1-for-2 with a double and two RBI for Jax State.
- Liberty leads Jax State 10-4 all-time in softball, including 2-1 in CUSA Softball Championship play. Jacksonville State defeated Liberty 7-2 in the semifinal of the 2025 CUSA Softball Championship, before Liberty run-ruled the Gamecocks in the title game.
- Anders has only allowed one earned run in 19 innings pitched at the 2026 CUSA Softball Championship.
- Anders pitched 24 2/3 scoreless innings, dating to the end of the regular season. It was Liberty's longest scoreless innings streak since current pitching coach Emily Kirby Nagle had 27 1/3 scoreless innings in a row, April 10-28, 2021.
- Liberty is making its third straight appearance in the CUSA Softball Championship title game. The Lady Flames are looking for their first three-peat all-time in conference tournament championships. Liberty is also looking to become the first team since DePaul (2002-05) to win three or more straight CUSA Softball Championships.
- Savannah Jessee has posted seven RBI in the 2026 CUSA Softball Championship. The record for RBI in a complete CUSA Tournament is nine, by WKU's Sophie Weber in 2024.
Liberty advances to the winner-take-all final of the 2026 CUSA Softball Championship, tomorrow at noon. The opponent is to be determined, as two games remain today. The winner of tomorrow's title game earns an automatic berth to the 2026 NCAA Division I Softball Championship.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Anders, Camden (15-6)
L: Makenna Moore (16-2)
Batting:
3B: McManus, Brynn 1
HR: McManus, Brynn 1 ; Lee, Dani 1
RBI: McManus, Brynn 2 ; Jessee, Savannah 1 ; Carrasquillo, Alexia 1 ; Lee, Dani 3
SH: Fox, Ella 1
SF: Jessee, Savannah 1 ; Carrasquillo, Alexia 1
Base Running:
RUNS: McManus, Brynn 2 ; Fonseca, Felicity 1 ; Norris, Aubry 1 ; Doerr, Paige 1 ; Lee, Dani 1 ; Whatley, Savanah 1
Batting:
2B: Morgan Nowakowski 1 ; Aria Davis 1
RBI: Morgan Nowakowski 2
Base Running:
RUNS: Chaney Peters 1 ; Jaci Underwood 1
HBP: Kailey Martin 1 ; Aria Davis 1
Game Leaders
Players Mentioned
P
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/ SoftballLiberty Softball Show with Dot Richardson, Alexia Carrasquillo and Camden Anders.
Wednesday, May 06
Lady Flames Softball Podcast: CUSA Tournament Preview + Dot Richardson and Maci Strickland Join!
Tuesday, May 05
Aubry Norris: A Bigger Purpose
Monday, May 04
Alexia Carrasquillo: Following God's Plan
Wednesday, April 29