Liberty Women’s Softball Wins Five Straight After A Slow Start

Liberty’s softball team began its season with a series of games in Leesburg, Florida, playing four games in three days Feb. 11-13 to kick off the 2022 campaign. 

Liberty opened its season Feb. 11 with a doubleheader against Iowa and No. 19 Kentucky. The Lady Flames lost both of those games 7-0 and 3-1, respectively. 

The games continued through the week and into the next weekend, and after falling in each of its first five games, the Lady Flames appeared to have bounced back, winning their last five straight and outscoring their opponents 39-7 in that stretch.

The Lady Flames look to build off an impressive 2021 season, in which they won 44 games and made it to the Regional Finals before eventually losing to College World Series participant James Madison University.

While the season did not start the way they had hoped after going 0-5, team members showed confidence that they can right the ship.

“I think that we’re on the right trajectory. It’s just going to take some time. We’re still learning how to play together, but I think in time it will come,” senior pitcher Emily
Kirby said. 

Her coach as well as her teammates echoed the sentiment. 

“We might not see it right now, but I can definitely say that when we start clicking on all four cylinders, we’re going to be tough to beat,” Head Coach Dot Richardson said. 

“I just think that it’ll all come in time. This team that we have is just so young,” junior infielder and outfielder Devyn Howard said. 

The team is indeed a young one, with 12 of the 24 players on the roster being either transfers or freshmen. Expectations are still high for this season, and Richardson believes they can compete with the best of teams in the country despite the unit’s youth. 

“I mean look at Missouri. They’re a top-15 team, and it’s evident we could’ve beaten them. I think the most overwhelming thing for our team has been that they’re trying too hard. They’re not slowing the game down and letting it come to them,” Richardson said. 

Liberty lost to No. 9 Missouri 6-5, a game in which a sixth-inning comeback attempt fell just short. 

The Lady Flames got the winning streak started in a doubleheader Feb. 18, shutting out both Maryland and Florida Atlantic 9-0 and 13-0, respectively.

The winning continued into a doubleheader Feb. 19 as well where the Lady Flames defeated Ohio State 3-2 and Hofstra 6-3. 

Despite Liberty’s high-scoring offense, the winning streak has been primarily fueled by sophomore pitcher Karlie Keeney, who allowed just one earned run in 12 innings pitched Feb. 18-19, including a five-inning no-hitter against Maryland.

Liberty’s next action will be its home-opener game in the Liberty Softball Classic, starting with a doubleheader Feb. 25 against George Washington and Charleston Southern. 

McCusker is a sports reporter. Follow him on Twitter