Both Duke and Liberty came out hot offensively Tuesday night, but the Blue Devil bullpen snuffed out the Flames when it mattered most to key a wild win.
Sophomore Justin Bellinger drilled a go-ahead solo home run in the top of the sixth inning that proved to be the game-winner and both teams did not score the rest of the way in an 8-7 Duke victory at Liberty Baseball Stadium in Lynchburg, Va. Sophomores Ryan Day, Jack Labosky and Mitch Stallings combined to toss four shutout innings to finish the contest after the lead changed hands five times in the first five innings.
Liberty seemed set to come back from its fourth deficit of the night when junior Will Shepherd singled and stole second with nobody out in the bottom of the sixth, but he strayed too far off the bag on a sharp grounder to Labosky at third and could not dive back to second in time as Labosky’s throw retired the lead runner.
The Flames put a runner in scoring position again in the ninth when senior Dalton Britt led off with a single and advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt. He reached third on a groundout, but was stranded 90 feet from sending the game to extra innings as Josh Barrick grounded out to end the game, as Stallings earned his fifth save of the year.
"They had some momentum, and then Bellinger had the big home run in the top of the sixth, and then that was a really good combined effort by those three guys at the end of the ballgame," Duke head coach Chris Pollard said. "Mitch Stallings and Jack Labosky made some really key pitches there in the eighth and ninth innings."
Liberty (20-18) manufactured a run in the bottom of the first inning with two walks, a wild pitch and an RBI groundout by junior Andrew Yacyk, but the Blue Devils (21-17) wasted no time taking their first lead in the second.
Sophomore Max Miller hit an RBI single through the right side of the infield to tie the contest, and two straight walks from freshmen Jimmy Herron and Chris Proctor put Duke in front 2-1.
Despite reaching base five times with four walks and a hit-by-pitch, Herron’s 12-game hitting streak ended when he grounded into a fielder's choice in the ninth inning in his only official at-bat. Proctor added three walks, a hit-by-pitch and a single as the pair of freshmen set the table for the offense, reaching base a combined 10 times on the night.
"They really strung together good at-bats," Pollard said. "When you get that type of on-base production out of the first two guys in your lineup, and Labosky and Bellinger are your three- and four-hole guys swinging it as well as they are, you’re going to score some runs."
It was Liberty’s turn to rally for the first time in the bottom half of the second, as the Flames loaded the bases on two walks and an infield single by leadoff hitter D.J. Artis. The Blue Devils squandered a chance to escape the threat when Labosky could not handle a grounder by Austin Bream, allowing two runs to score on an error as the ball trickled into left field.
"We gave them some free offense there in the first couple of innings, and they took advantage of that," Pollard said. "That kind of got them going and they put some good swings on it in the fourth and fifth innings."
Labosky made up for his mistake and then some for the rest of the night, starting with the next time he strode to the plate in the fourth frame. The Clovis, Calif., native roped a double down the left-field line to clear the bases after Herron and Proctor were both hit by pitches to start the inning. The hit gave Duke a 5-3 lead after sophomore Michael Smiciklas tied the game at three with a two-out RBI single in the third inning.
The teams continued to leapfrog in front of each other for the next several innings, as junior Bailey Clark promptly gave up the lead in the bottom of the fourth inning. Clark—Duke’s usual Friday starter making his first relief appearance of the year—retired the first two batters he saw but went on to surrender five straight two-out singles that resulted in three runs for the Flames.
Herron and Proctor each walked once again in the fifth, loading the bases to set the table for Labosky with two outs. For the second straight time, Labosky delivered—lining a single into center field to drive in two runs to put the Blue Devils ahead 7-6.
"That just shows you how much Jack’s grown as a player—the ability to put that [error] behind him and go out and do his job. Errors happen. Infielders make errors at every level of our sport, and you have to be good at putting it behind you and getting on to the next play," Pollard said. "Not only did he swing the bat well and pitch well, but he also played very good defense from that point forward."
It was the third Duke lead of the night that did not last through the inning, but Liberty could only tie the score with on a fielder’s choice before stranding Artis on second. When Bellinger delivered his home run to lead off the sixth, the Flames could not muster one more rally as the Blue Devils took the season series 2-1.
Duke continues its eight-game road swing with a series this weekend at Virginia Tech.
Get The Chronicle straight to your inbox
Signup for our weekly newsletter. Cancel at any time.