Liberty defeated Virginia Tech 7-4 Wednesday evening at Worthington Field at Liberty Baseball Stadium, marking the second time in eight days the Flames topped the Hokies. Liberty plated six runs in the first inning to build an early advantage.
The decisive first inning for Liberty included a three-run home run by catcher Tucker Moore, his fifth of the season. Moore later added an RBI on a sacrifice fly in the third inning, tying his career high with four RBI in the game. Camden Troyer and Easton Swofford also contributed RBI singles in the first inning.
Virginia Tech mounted a comeback attempt in the later innings. Jared Davis hit a two-run home run in the seventh inning, and Ben Watson followed with a two-run homer in the eighth. These hits narrowed Liberty’s lead to three runs. The Hokies brought the potential tying run to the plate in the eighth inning but could not capitalize.
Liberty right-hander Caleb Lingenfelter earned his second win over Virginia Tech this season. He pitched five scoreless innings, allowing four hits and striking out three without issuing a walk. Garrett McLaughlin secured the save, pitching a scoreless ninth inning.
Mathieu Curtis took the loss for Virginia Tech, surrendering five runs on two hits in 2/3 innings. The Virginia Tech bullpen, including Luke Jackman, Marcel Kulik, and Grant Manning, held Liberty scoreless from the fourth inning onward.
Despite being outhit 10-6, the Flames maintained their early lead. Both teams left runners on base, with Liberty stranding seven and Virginia Tech stranding eight.
The win improved Liberty's record to 27-22 and snapped a three-game losing streak. Virginia Tech also moved to 27-22 and has lost six consecutive games.
This season marks the first time since 2019 that the Liberty University baseball program has won both contests against Virginia Tech in a single season.
Liberty is scheduled to travel to Miami, Florida, for a Conference USA series against FIU beginning Friday. Meanwhile, Virginia Tech will seek to address starting pitching concerns while leveraging late-game offensive production in upcoming games, according to the official report from Blacksburg.
The Virginia Tech perspective highlighted the resilience shown by the team's late scoring push despite the early deficit.
