LYNCHBURG, Va. – After an impressive 2026 regular season, the Liberty Flames return to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2022. It’s also the Flames first trip to the big dance, under second-year coach Bradley LeCroy.
“The expectations and standards are to play in the postseason, the NCAA’s and we talked about this on day one back in August,” said coach LeCroy.
The Flames will play in the Athens Regional, hosted by Georgia. Other teams in the regional include Long Island and Boston College, Liberty’s opening opponent.
The Flames put together a 41-19 record that included stiffer non-conference competition with the likes of ACC schools Virginia, Wake Forest, NC State and Virginia Tech.
“We were intentional with our scheduling to put ourselves in this position,” LeCroy added.
Leadership has also been key to the teams success. LCA grad Ben Blair is at the top of that list. The Conference USA Pitcher of the Year has a 6-5 record with an ERA of 3.87. Blair’s 102 strikeouts this season ranks him third on the programs single-season record list. The Gretna native is excited to get the start on the mound Friday when the Flames take on Boston College.
“It’s going to be amazing,” Blair said. “I’ve definitely watched the regionals as a kid and always pictured myself on the mound pitching and to get it going game one for this team down in Georgia it’s going to be amazing.”
Of the other teams in the Athens Regional, Liberty has never played Boston College or LIU. The Flames do have history against Georgia, having gone just 2-8 against the Bulldogs all time.
Friday’s first pitch between Liberty and Boston College has been moved up to Noon in hopes of avoiding any inclement weather.