Matchup – Old Dominion (18-2, 3-0 Sun Belt) vs. Liberty (8-11, 1-2 ASUN)
Game Location – Bud Metheny Ballpark (Norfolk, Va.)
Start Time – Wednesday, March 22 at 6 p.m.
Watch – ESPN+
Live Stats – Click Here
NORFOLK, Va. – Old Dominion baseball is back at Bud Metheny Ballpark this Wednesday as the Monarchs host Liberty for a 6 p.m. game.
The game will be streamed on ESPN+ and fans can also follow along with live stats.
Around the Horn
The Monarchs (18-2, 3-0 Sun Belt) pushed their winning streak to six games last week with a two-game sweep of Princeton and three-game sweep of ULM to open Sun Belt Conference play.
ODU was rewarded for its play on Monday as the Monarchs moved up to No. 23 in the NCAA Division I RPI list and Collegiate Baseball ranked the team 24th in its latest poll.
The Bud Bombers currently have 11 players hitting over .300. Tyler Wheeler leads the way with a .419 average, Hunter Fitz-Gerald is next at .398, Alex Bouche is third at .373 and Jay Tarkenton owns a .364 clip. Others include Thomas Wheeler (.355), Luke Waters (.338), Kenny Levari (.333), Jack Speights (.333), Robbie O'Neal (.319), Chris Dengler (.306) and Jake Ticer (.306).
The Monarchs enter Wednesday's game ranked in the Top 25 in the nation in 12 different offensive categories. ODU is second in scoring (10.8 runs per game); third in batting average (.335), home runs (46), home runs per game (2.30) and slugging percentage (.615); fifth in hits (244) and runs (216); ninth in triples (10) and triples per game (0.50); 10th in on-base percentage (.442); 14th in walks (123); and 21st in doubles (46).
Freshman left-hander Ben Moore (2-0) will make his first career start Wednesday night. The Frederick, Maryland native owns a 2.25 ERA through seven appearances this season. He's allowed five runs, two of them earned, on 12 hits and one walk with six strikeouts in eight innings of work.
Scouting Liberty
The Flames (8-11, 1-2 ASUN) were in Fort Myers, Florida this past weekend for their ASUN opening series against No. 20 Florida Gulf Coast. Liberty won Friday's opener 9-7, but fell to FGCU 11-8 on Saturday and 7-2 on Sunday.
Gray Betts leads Liberty's hitters with a .315 average. Brayden Horton and Kane Kepley are both hitting an even .300 while Jake Lazzaro is at .290 and Camden Troyer .282. Troyer has the team highs in runs (14) and RBIs (14) while Betts and John Simmons (.125) have both drawn 10 walks. Jaylen Guy (.258) is 7-for-9 and Lazzaro is 6-for-8 to lead the Flames in stolen bases.
Collectively, Liberty is hitting .237 with a .368 slugging percentage and a .339 on-base percentage. The Flames are 22nd in the country with 13 sacrifice bunts (Lazzaro has four).
Liberty will start David Erickson (0-0, 7.71 ERA) in what will be a staff day for the Flames. The team owns a combined 5.44 ERA with opponents hitting .253 against them. The Flames are 27th nationally with two shutouts as well as 31st in strikeouts per nine innings (10.8).
The Series
Wednesday's meeting marks the first since the 2016 season when the two teams split their home-and-home series. ODU edged Liberty 7-6 on March 1 in Norfolk, but fell 7-6 in Lynchburg on May 11. The Monarchs are up 30-25 in the all-time series.
ODU and Liberty are scheduled for a second game this season, set for a 6 p.m. start on May 3 in Lynchburg.
What's Next
ODU continues conference play with three home games versus Marshall this weekend. The Monarchs and Herd will play at 6 p.m. on Friday, 3 p.m. on Saturday and 1 p.m. on Sunday.
Voucher Books!
The 2022-23 Old Dominion voucher book is available for sale on ynottix.com. For the cost of $50, you get 25 tickets that can be presented at the gate for admission to any regular season home game at Bud Metheny Ballpark. Single-game tickets can also be purchased for $5.
Click here to purchase the 2022-23 ODU voucher book.
ODU and Liberty to Meet Wednesday Night at The Bud
