First Pitch: NCAA First Round vs. Liberty

In the college baseball world, a school like Liberty University is arguably one of the university's more shining examples of a team that arrived in the NCAA with immediate success after transitioning from its NAIA beginnings. Its first seasons were coached by a former World Series champion in Al "Red" Worthington, and the Flames constructed a program that gained entry into the Big South Conference in 1992 before winning its first conference tournament one year later. Five years later, the quick growth in Lynchburg resulted in the team's first conference regular season and second conference tournament crown. A third championship in 2000 paved the road for its first regional win over Seton Hall, and return trips to the NCAA Tournament in 2013, 2019 and 2021 brought more national exposure to a team that largely advanced to the tournament as an at-large bid.

So perhaps that's where Friday's story really needs to begin. Throughout LIberty, sports are a gateway to the national lexicon, and success on the gridiron or on the hardwood basketball floor provide the backdrop for the Flames to remain a constant presence among mid-major programs. The baseball program, though, is where the hallmark system began. For decades, the emerging power program with a reputation for gaining traction in the sport's overall structure survived realignment and expansion talks more normally centered around football's Power Four conferences, but success within the Atlantic Sun and Conference USA rank among two of the best baseball-centric leagues in the nation. The trips to the 2021 and 2022 tournaments emerged because the Flames nearly won 40 games, and the COVID-era team in 2021 eliminated Duke with two wins over the Blue Devils while losing two games to Tennessee, the latter of which was a 3-1 Regional Final that went the distance against the No. 3 overall seed in the tournament.

"It's just a really good baseball team," said BC head coach Todd Interdonato. "The more I look at them, the more impressed I am with them. I'm familiar with [head coach Bradley LeCroy]; our coaching career has kind of crossed over a good bit. I know it's just a very solid, very fundamental [team]. Their pitching is exceptional. I have an anticipation of who they're going to throw, and I think that their kid has one of the best arms that we'll see this year."

A rub exists because Liberty is a bonafide baseball stepping stone for coaches and players who are willing to adhere to the university's pressure-packed expectations on the field. Head coach Bradley LeCroy is a former Clemson shortstop with a bevy of experience in the South after providing assistant coaching duties to both Tennessee and his alma mater, and his two years at VCU led the Rams an Atlantic-10 championship. Alumni like Sid Bream dot the list of Major League Baseball's former players, and more recent players like Fraser Ellard, Will Wagner, Mason Fluharty, Joe Adametz, Cole Hertzler, Garrett Horn, Camden Troyer and Dylan Mathiesen received draft call-outs from MLB franchises. Simply living up to their standards is never enough.

In a world where baseball successfully retained its charm after so-called mid-major programs won 40 games and advanced to an NCAA Tournament, that translates to the Liberty Flames performing significantly better than a No. 3 seed would indicate. The at-large bid is well-earned, and Friday's first round matchup against BC is an intriguing cross-section between two teams scuffling for a shot at the winner's bracket path to the Regional Final and Super Regional rounds.

On with the preview of Friday's matchup between Boston College and Liberty:

*****
Around The Horn

Stereotypical college baseball teams follow simple formulas by constructing lineups centered around typical roles within a batting order. The top two hitters either get on base or know how to use their legs to both advance runners or avoid double plays, which in turn aligns with a heavy-hitting meat at the center of the order. No. 6 hitters are capable of resetting the time table or driving runners across the dish before the No. 7 hitter is a more limited version of the cleanup spot, and the lower part of the order is tasked with turning things around or aligning the top of the order for a run back at the pitcher.

Liberty bucks that trend by utilizing its legs to extend singles into scoring position opportunities and stealing bases to the tune of an 84 percent success rate. The 105 successful steals tied Penn for No. 42 nationally after Northeastern topped the country as the only team with 200-plus heists, but posting three players north of 10 swipes is an indicator of a team with speed throughout its order. Leftfielder Nick Barone was a particular case study because he bookended a 19-for-22 rate on the basepaths with a team-leading 12 home runs and 55 RBI.

Fortunately for BC, the idea of facing a team that runs at will is easily simulable because the Eagles were one of the teams that stole bases at a higher clip than Liberty, and beyond catchers Gunnar Johnson and Cesar Gonzalez, starting pitcher AJ Colarusso worked most of the season from advantageous points against hitters. Throwing strikes on 68 percent of his pitches helped, and even the game against Miami ended with him well ahead of hitters despite the poor inning that resulted in Hurricane runs. Over the course of the year, he's actually been at his best when he throws between 75-100 pitches over a six-inning outing, one of his best outings of the year came when he induced 10 flyballs against Virginia, a move that can keep runners from leaving bases on check-ups and sacrifice attempts.

"Everyone's got strengths and weaknesses," explained Interdonato. "Our park, metrically, is one of the hardest baseball fields in college baseball to hit a home run. I know Liberty, their home runs aren't as big, but their park is huge as well, but you have to look at a place like [Foley Field] and know that the ball might carry a little more."

*****
On The Bump

Liberty advanced to the NCAA Tournament by dominating weekends with a strong rotation and two legitimate big league-type arms in the back of its bullpen. Among the staff, Ben Blair is the likely ace for Friday's game against BC and enters the MLB Draft season with an honest chance at creeping into a first round selection. From a velocity standpoint, his high-90s fastball sits in the mid-90s with movement, which is essentially professional grade for anyone who might find his way into a competitive balance round selection from any of the nine teams earning a sandwich pick. Beyond that, his 87.1 innings pitches ranked second in the league behind Sam Houston's Ryan Peterson, but his 106 strikeouts compared to 17 issued walks placed him in a class by himself. Aside from the innings, his .219 opposing batting average and six home runs aligned with the idea that BC needs to maximize its opportunities on the base paths.

"How aggressive he is, and how competitive he is, that was what came off the film on me," said Interdonato. "You can look at heat maps and scatter plots and all of that other [stuff], but when you watch him on film, his ability to go out and attack people, it's that ability to attack that jumped out to me."

Liberty has the luxury of potentially saving Blair for a possible elimination game or a gateway game into the Regional Final round because second starter Bradley Zayac is barely a stitch behind the first front end starter, and the depth chart aligned to back end bullpen arms from Tyler August and Cooper Harrington gives the Flames multiple strikeout options in the later innings. Going 15-0 in decisions between Zayac and August is a total game-changer, and Harrington struck out 54 batters in 45 innings and 24 appearances - numbers that kept him in the running for a Second Team All-CUSA award alongside Zayac.

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Meteorology 101

It's going to rain. Of course it is.

Those of us who recall a very long and very late night in Tuscaloosa, Alabama during the 2023 NCAA Tournament conceivably remember when coaches and bat dogs attempted to tarp the field during a southern-style downpour. The winner's bracket Second Round game against the Tide didn't get underway until nearly 11 p.m. in Massachusetts - owing to Alabama's Central Time Zone location, it felt later than that - and the vision of puddles growing on the edges of Sewell Thomas Stadium's glorious grass is enough to conjure some hives or other allergic reaction. Considering both of my kids were less than three years old and the younger of my daughters was approximately seven months old, I was especially angry about the situation.

Playing in the early game on Friday should help BC avoid elongated delays ahead of expected afternoon rains, and the Thursday decision to move the game to a 12 p.m. start arguably avoids the bulk of the forecast for the evening hours. Rain percentages and possibilities not topping 25 percent until the dinner hour is a collective good thing, after all, but it does mean that the Eagles are contending against muggy mid-80s.

On the bright side, high humidity causes baseballs to absorb moisture, which means heavy ball pitchers gain a slight advantage against their opposition by improving their ability to grip the seams for breaking balls. Consider the conversation about Coors Field in Colorado and how the baseballs are stored in a humidor to counteract inflated home run and fly ball numbers. For a pitcher like Colarusso, humid air and high temperatures is therefore better for his arm, which is why he won three of his starts against Clemson, North Carolina and Cornell, which was played in South Carolina in February.

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Where in the World is Boston College Baseball?

(If you grew up during the 1990s, you just sang that to the tune of Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego? Also, remember to stretch before going outside to do yard work this weekend. We're not young like we used to be.)

Baseball in the SEC perfectly blends the modernity of the sport against its classic charm and history. The vast majority of its stadiums were built long before college baseball began incorporating video, analytics, metrics, or anything that's broken through the game's chic veneer, but recent renovations ensured that fan atmosphere remained near or at the top of every national ranking. Every field in the conference is capable of hosting a regional, but there's a folksy past that's embedded in playing at Foley Field in Athens, Georgia.

Foley opened in 1966 and later hosted the 1987 SEC Tournament before Georgia won five separate NCAA Regionals and three NCAA Super Regional championships on its natural grass playing surface. The stadium as it's currently built was constructed in 1990 before undergoing a $45 million renovation ahead of the 2025 season that subsequently built a new pitching lab and hitting tunnels. Perhaps most important to fans, the creation of premium spaces and the installation of stadium LED lights joined with the 2013 installation of a video scoreboard situated beyond an outfield fence now lined with trees.

Teams entering Foley Field don't typically beat the Bulldogs, but the dimensions down the lines and into the power alleys support hitters who are willing to find sweet spots on their bats. The short right field line measures 314 feet compared to its 350-foot counterpart in left, and the steep climb to a 365-foot power alley on the right side is an invitation for left handed power hitters or righties possessing opposite field power before reaching a 400-foot drive to center field. That said, the Garden Club Terrace resembles the so-called "beer shower" section from Ole Miss in 2016.

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Non-Baseball Story of the Day

I know, I know, I said this was a non-baseball story, but it begins and ends with a trip to a Little League baseball field.

The short version involves my eight-year old nephew bumping up to a higher division for our hometown's spring season. He's been fortunate enough to earn All Star honors against kids who are older by a year or two, which is no small feat in a city that's still running strong at the Little League level. Unfortunately for my sister-in-law - or fortunately, depending on your position - that's also meant that she spends two or three nights per week at a Little League field because my brother-in-law is a first responder working 24-plus hours at a fire station.

Thursday night caused a particularly prickly situation for the poor woman. Her husband was at the fire station for work, but my wife - her sister - and their parents were at a fundraiser for the fire department. She needed to go to the baseball field, and the thought of dragging her two-year old toddler to the field meant that her cross trainers were already logging the requisite miles for chasing a child through the playground.

In other words, forget watching baseball.

Enter Dan, who earned some serious brownie points with his wife after offering to take the two-year old toddler. My girls naturally loved the idea of having their baby cousin visit for the night, and they all ate dinner together before playing and reading books with Daddy - aka Uncle Dan. When time came for my nephew's game to end, my sister-in-law came home and grabbed her daughter while mine went to bed. I sat down to write this preview shortly thereafter, and I'm pretty sure I impressed my wife for the first time in years after I even got a snuggly picture with all of the girls on the couch.

My nephew, meanwhile, entered his game as a closing pitcher after his team nearly blew a five-run lead in the last half of the sixth inning. Facing a bases loaded scenario with two outs in a two-run game, he issued a walk to allow the opposing team to force the potential tying and winning runs into scoring position. Getting to two strikes, my sister-in-law claimed that he flashed the biggest smile she's ever seen, and he whiffed the last hitter with a sidearm delivery that I definitely didn't show him (no, I'm not kidding. Had I seen it, the old school pitcher in me would've lost his stack).

Immediately after the game ended, the city shut the lights, and bats - tons and tons of bats - woke up from their hiding places among the trees. Everyone scrambled, and my sister-in-law grabbed our nephew in a Bo Jackson-like sprint to the car.

With all due respect to John West and our podcast episode from 2023 (IYKYK), I have a new Batman to discuss…I just hope he doesn't ask me about the Joker card in my wallet.

*****
Dan's Batting Practice Song and Final Thought

The boy said, "My name's Johnny and it might be a sin,
But I'll take your bet, you're gonna regret,
Cuz I'm the best that's ever been.
-The Charlie Daniels Band, "The Devil Went Down To Georgia"

Boston College earned its way to the NCAA Tournament by believing in its own power as a collective unit, and the Eagles remained a No. 2 seed because of the selection committee's willingness to buy into their entire body of work. Once a lock for the NCAA Tournament, always a lock for the NCAA Tournament, especially when it involves the fourth place team in one of the nation's two best baseball conferences.

That said, Liberty's baseball reputation is established by its willingness to consistently grow its game to another level. The Flames haven't been to a Super Regional, but this year's team is probably the best option because of its two-headed monster in its rotation and in its bullpen. Its lineup involves the C-USA Player of the Year and its collective performance generated wins over West Virginia, NC State, Virginia Tech and Duke. Combining that with the overall strength of Conference USA and Liberty's ability to avoid losing games built a formula that sent the Flames to Athens as a sleeper team for a trip to Omaha.

Neither team will find itself on a flight home after Friday's game, but the road to a regional championship is much harder when the first game ends in a loss. Striking the balance between playing for today while looking ahead to tomorrow is therefore a critical importance. Whichever team can therefore impose its will is likely to find its way into the winner's bracket game against either the No. 3 national seed or one of the unlikeliest upset stories in college baseball history.

Boston College and Liberty kick off the 2026 NCAA Division I Baseball Tournament with a 12 p.m. first pitch from Foley Field in Athens, Georgia. Streaming television coverage is available on the ESPN+ subscription service that's available through the network's family of Internet and mobile device apps.

Following the BC-Liberty game, top-seeded and No. 3 national seed Georgia plays NEC champion Long Island in a 5 p.m. game, with television coverage likewise occurring on the ESPN+ streaming service. Game times for Saturday's game have not yet been revealed, but the losers will play in the early game with winners advancing to the nightcap. From there, the winning team in the lower bracket advances to Sunday while the losing team is eliminated, and the loser from the game between the two winning First Round teams is dropped into an early elimination game. Based on which teams advance, the team advancing out of the lower bracket is forced to play a doubleheader on Sunday against the advantageous winner's bracket team, with a potential game for Monday if the winner's bracket team loses its first game in the Regional Final.

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First Pitch: NCAA First Round vs. Liberty

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