No. 12 Duke Faces Liberty in Midweek Showdown

Wednesday, April 20

Lynchburg, Va.

5 P.M.

Duke University

Liberty

Photo by: Duke Athletics

No. 12 Duke Faces Liberty in Midweek Showdown

4/19/2022 4:41:00 PM | Softball

WATCH | ESPN+LIVE STATS GAME NOTES (PDF)

DURHAM – The 12th-ranked Duke softball team (34-5, 14-2 ACC) returns to the state of Virginia for its penultimate non-conference game, traveling to Lynchburg, Va., for a matchup with Liberty Wednesday at 5 p.m., at Liberty Softball Stadium.

Wednesday's game against the Flames (31-13, 15-0 ASUN) will be streamed on ESPN Plus.

Last Time Out
Duke set several program records, en route to a doubleheader sweep of James Madison Apr. 12. The Blue Devils set the single game program records for runs scored (24), home runs (10), hits (24) and RBI (24) in a 24-2 game one win over the Dukes, before taking the second game 10-1 in six innings. Jameson Kavel became the first Blue Devil in program history to hit three home runs in a game, while breaking the single season home run and runs scored records. Kristina Foreman and Claire Davidson were also huge, with Foreman hitting .833 (5-for-6) with a home run and seven RBI, while Davidson hit .500 (4-for-8) with three home runs and eight RBI.

Opponent History
Duke vs. Liberty – Series Tied, 1-1
The Blue Devils and Flames are meeting for the third time, but first time since 2019, when they played two games in the same season. The Blue Devils won the opening game 3-1 Feb. 9, 2019, in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, before falling 10-6 in nine innings in Durham over a month later on Mar. 27. Caroline Jacobsen was a key piece of the offense in both games, combining to go 4-for-7 with a home run and three RBI.

Scouting The Opponent
Liberty: After starting the season 0-5, the Flames have lived up to their name, going a scorching 31-8 since that time for a 31-13 record. Duke and Liberty have several common opponents this season, with the Flames earning wins over James Madison, Louisville, Notre Dame and Virginia (twice), while dropping games to Clemson (twice). The Flames feature a multi-pronged offensive attack, with Devyn Howard hitting .374 with seven home runs and 27 RBI, while Caroline Hudson is a key power bat, with 12 home runs and 39 RBI. Karlie Keeney leads the way in the circle for Liberty with 10 complete games and three shutouts, going 14-6 with a 2.39 ERA.

Duke Updated Rankings List
D1 Softball: #9 (Same)
Softball America: #9 (Same)
ESPN/USA Softball: #11 (Down one spot from #12)
USA Today/NFCA: #12 (Same)

What to Watch For

Kavel has been one of the top doubles' hitters in the nation with 14 on the year to rank 12th nationally. She is closing in on the program's single season record of 15, set by Raine Wilson in 2018.
Kavel is also on a 23-game on-base streak, good for the longest streak by a Blue Devil this season and second longest in program history. Kavel is also on an 11-game hitting streak, which is also the second longest in program history.
Rachel Crabtree is also on a lengthy on-base streak of her own, standing at 19 straight games. She owns the program record of 25 set back in 2019.
Two other Blue Devils, Kamryn Jackson (12) and Foreman (11) are on season-long on-base streaks.
Peyton St. George ranks 12th in the nation in wins with 17 and needs just three more to set a single season program record.
In addition to Kavel (doubles) and St. George (wins), the Blue Devils have several other top-25 national marks. Kavel ranks sixth in total bases (112), seventh in slugging percentage (.957), 13th in runs per game (1.15), 14th in home runs (15), 22nd in home runs per game (0.38), 23rd in batting average (.436) and 25th in doubles per game (0.36). Foreman ranks 22nd in RBI per game (1.12) and St. George ranks 15th in saves (three).
Duke is swinging for the fences this season, ranking seventh in the nation in home runs per game at 1.95 to lead the ACC. Kavel leads the team with 15 on the season.
With 76 home runs for the campaign, the Blue Devils have already blown past their single-season record of 47 from last year. The Blue Devils have also set a single-season RBI mark with 293 this season.
The Blue Devils continue to lead the ACC in batting average (.345), slugging percentage (.658), on-base percentage (.436) and scoring (7.85 runs per game), while ranking in the top-10 nationally in all of them, plus home runs per game, doubles, doubles per game and ERA.