FLAMES EVEN SERIES WITH 3-1 WIN OVER RU

BOX SCORE LYNCHBURG, Va. - Liberty scored two runs in the first inning Friday and made that early lead stand up in a 3-1 victory over Radford to even the Big South series at a game apiece heading into Saturday's finale.

The Highlanders looked as though they would take the early lead after Josh Reavis doubled in the top of the first and was trying to score on Patrick Marshall's two-out single to left field. Reavis, however, was thrown out at the plate to end the inning.

The Flames put together four base hits and tallied a pair of runs in their half of the first off of Radford starter Michael Boyle. Boyle settled in after the first and retired 11 straight batters, but Liberty had scored all the runs it would need on the day.

Reavis cut the lead in half in the top of the fifth with an RBI single that plated Blake Sipe, who led off the inning with a walk, but that was all the offense the Highlanders could muster against Liberty starter, Brooks Roy.

Roy pitched 8.0 innings and gave up one run on five hits. Ashton Perritt worked the final two innings of scoreless relief the earn his fifth save of the season.

"Roy did a good job of keeping us off balance," Radford head coach Joe Raccuia said. "They took advantage in the first, but all in all, I thought we got a good start from Boyle and good innings from Maxwell and Andrews."

Liberty added an insurance run in the fifth on a two-base RBI sac fly. Radford's Zach Woolcock made a catch on a ball hit to the warning track by Ryan Cordell and fell into the wall as he made the out. Perritt scored from second on the catch to make the score 3-1.

The loss drops RU to 29-23 overall and 14-9 in the Big South. Liberty improves to 28-26, 12-11. The two rivals will settle the series at 2:00 p.m. on Saturday.

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