Liberty is 1-9 against Basic since March of 2018 but they'll have a chance to close the gap a little bit on Friday. Liberty will square off against Basic at 3:30 p.m. Expect the scorekeeper to be kept busy: if their previous games are any indication, the two teams will really light up the scoreboard.
On Thursday, Liberty got the win against Virgin Valley by a conclusive 10-2. The victory made it back-to-back wins for the Patriots.
Carson Cates looked comfortable as he tossed three innings while giving up no earned runs off three hits. What's more, he gave up only zero earned runs, the fewest he's had since back in March of 2024.
On the hitting side, Liberty let Chris Onoszko and Tyler McDougal run wild. Onoszko scored two runs while going 3-for-3, while McDougal scored two runs and stole a base while going 1-for-2. What's more, McDougal posted two RBI, the most he's had since March 1st. Nicholas Blakeney was another key player, scoring two runs while going 2-for-3.
Liberty was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .406. They are a perfect 8-0 when they post a batting average of .375 or better.
Meanwhile, Basic had just enough and edged out Westminster Christian 10-8 on Thursday.
Andruw Giles and Koa Won did most of the damage at the plate: Giles scored three runs and stole a base while going 4-for-4, while Won went a perfect 2-for-2 with one home run and three RBI. Another player making a difference was Dallon Cegavske, who scored two runs while going 3-for-4.
Liberty pushed their record up to 12-5 with the win, which was their third straight on the road. The victories came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 11.7 runs over those games. As for Basic, their record is now 10-4.
Liberty couldn't quite get it done against Basic in their previous matchup on Monday as they fell 5-0. Can Liberty avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
