Coaching search update
Following this coaching search is fun. Things change quickly. For a brief period of time earlier this week, I thought Jeff Meyer was the odds-on favorite to get the job. Now I’m leaning more to Jeff Barber will likely go with fresh blood, someone who has not coached at Liberty before. As for our list of 12 names to keep an eye on, it should be fairly easy to see who Barber’s top targets off that list would be based on what he has said. He wants someone with head coaching experience that has been successful at the Division I level. Who does that describe on our list? Mike Young, LeVelle Moton, and Bobby Lutz to name a few. Can Liberty convince them to move from where they’re at? That will be the tough part.
Big South Tournament
Coastal Carolina went on to win the Big South Tournament in Conway last week after they knocked off Winthrop in the championship game. Will the Chanticleers get a 15 seed? Or will they be stuck with a 16 again? The other big story of the tournament was #9 Longwood knocking off #1 Charleston Southern. The Lancers became the first 9 seed to make the quarterfinals of the Big South Tournament.
Lady Flames win conference, again
Coach Carey Green led the Lady Flames to their 16th Big South Tournament title in school history. All 16 titles have come in the past 19 seasons. Ashley Rininger was named Tournament MVP after posting 16 points and 10 rebounds in the Championship game over High Point. She had a double-double in all 3 games of the tournament while averaging 15.3 points and 11.7 rebounds per game. Liberty will find out on Monday what their seeding will be in the NCAA Tournament. ESPN currently has them predicted as a 14 seed against Iowa.
Baseball update
The Flames took 2 of 3 against Kent State this past weekend in Lynchburg. After dropping the series opener, Liberty bounced back to win games 2 and 3 including a 4-3 mark in 12 innings in game 2. This week’s midweek game against West Virginia was postponed. 4 games are scheduled this weekend between Western Carolina and Penn State. All games will be played at Liberty Baseball Stadium and on ESPN3 beginning with this afternoon’s 5pm game against WCU. The Flames are 8-6 on the year with an RPI of 120 according to WarrenNolan.
Women’s hockey wins national championship
Liberty’s women’s hockey team won the ACHA Division I National Championship with a win over Miami (OH) on Sunday. It’s Liberty’s first national championship in hockey. Meanwhile, the men’s hockey team lost to Ohio on Saturday in the ACHA National Tournament.
Spring practice
Liberty’s spring football practice begins on Tuesday. We will be covering several of the practices as the Flames begin defense of their 2014 Big South Championship and first ever FCS Playoff appearance.
Other sports
- The softball team went 3-2 in their 5 games in South Carolina this past weekend. They beat Dartmouth, South Carolina State, and Loyola Chicago. The Lady Flames are 7-11 this season and open conference play this weekend at Gardner-Webb.
- The women’s tennis team beat #71 Pacific, 5-2, on Tuesday. It was the program’s first ever win over a ranked opponent. The Lady Flames are 12-2 this season.
- The men’s tennis team had won 4 in a row before falling to #72 UTSA on Thursday to move to 8-5 on the season.
FlameFans thread of the week
Already 600 posts in our “possible candidates for men’s BB“ thread. It’s this week’s FlameFans thread of the week!
