FLAMES LOSE IN CHAMPIONSHIP GAME
Due to a slow news week last week, we didn’t have our weekly Fuel update. So, going back a couple weeks ago, Liberty made an impressive run in the Big South baseball tournament that ultimately ended in a 1-0 loss to Coastal Carolina in the championship game. Freshman Jack DeGroat was the standout, pitching 15 innings and allowing just 1 run during the tournament.
ARTIS NAMED FRESHMAN ALL-AMERICAN
As he continues to rack up the postseason honors, Liberty outfielder D.J. Artis has been named to the 2016 Louisville Slugger Freshmen All-American Team. This comes on the heels of Artis’ being named the Big South Freshman of the Year and named to the All-Big South first team. Artis led the Big South and finished 13th nationally with a .500 on base percentage. He set a new Liberty single season record with 52 walks, which ranked 2nd in the Big South and in the top 15 Nationally.
MEET OUR BASEBALL BEAT WRITER, EVAN TAYLOR
To enhance our baseball coverage, we have added Evan Taylor to our lineup as baseball beat writer. Evan will provide updates throughout the year including coverage of games, Big South baseball, baseball recruiting, Flames in the Minors, and much, more more. We’re excited to welcome Evan to the team, be sure to give him a follow on twitter @Evan_Taylor.
KIRILLOFF DRAFTED 15TH OVERALL
Alex Kirilloff, a Liberty signee, was drafted 15th overall in the 2016 MLB Draft by the Minnesota Twins on Thursday night. A prospect from Pittsburgh and Plum High School, the 6’1″, 195 pound Kirilloff is projected as an outfield, but also boasts a high-80s fastball. He could sign for as much as $2.8 million and most first round picks sign with their draft teams, making it unlikely Kirilloff ends up on the diamond at Liberty Baseball Stadium. The MLB Draft continues throughout the weekend, for an idea of what to watch for, read our MLB Draft Preview from earlier this week.
FOOTBALL RECRUITING UPDATE
The Flames coaching staff has been extremely busy on the recruiting trail over the past couple of weeks. In total, we’ve tracked down over 50 total offers to class of 2017 prospects. Get details on each of these offers on our 2017 football prospects page.
FLAMES WIN BIG SOUTH SASSER CUP
Liberty won its 12th Big South Sasser Cup title as announced by the conference late last week. The Flames also won the Women’s All-Sport Award and Men’s All-Sport Award. Liberty is just the 5th athletics department to sweep all 3 major awards during the same season, and marks the 3rd time Liberty has done so. Coastal swept all 3 awards twice. With the 12 Big South Sasser Cup titles, the Flames move past Coastal’s 11 for the most in conference history. Either Liberty or Coastal has won the award every year dating back to the 1997-1998 season.
EDNAH KUKRGAT IN NCAA CHAMPIONSHIP RACE
Liberty sophomore Ednah Kurgat will compete in the women’s 5K national championship race at the 2016 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field Championships on Saturday at 8:25pm. The race will be televised live on ESPN. Previously this year, she placed 12th in cross country and 9th in the indoor 5k.
THE COUNTDOWN IS ON!
There’s just 85 days until kickoff in Blacksburg on September 3rd against Virginia Tech, and check out this season ticket commercial/hype video the athletic department released this week:
