LYNCHBURG, Va., March 18, 2008 – James Madison University got a two-run home run from junior Brett Garner (Burke, Va./Lake Braddock) and survived a pair of late threats from Liberty University for a 3-2 non-conference win Tuesday afternoon at Worthington Stadium.

JMU improved to 14-3 overall and won its 10^th game in a row to continue the program’s best start since 1988.  The Dukes improved to 5-0 in one-run games.  Liberty fell to 9-7 overall after dropping its fourth game in a row.

With JMU up 3-0 going into the bottom of the eighth, LU loaded the bases with one out.  A fielder’s choice groundout brought in the first run for the Flames.  A hit batter reloaded the bases, but redshirt freshman Trevor Knight (Charlottesville, Va./St. Anne’s-Belfield) came in to strike out the next batter to escape the jam. 

After the Dukes went down on three strikeouts in the top of the ninth, Liberty made a strong push in its final turn at bat.  After a groundout, consecutive singles put runners on first and second.  Senior P.K. Keller (Clearwater, Fla.) smacked Knight’s first pitch a mere six inches from the top of the wall in right field.  One run came in but the second runner went through a stop sign at third base and was caught in a rundown for the second out.  With a runner on second, Knight got cleanup hitter Aaron Grijalva (Redlands, Calif.) to ground out to short stop to seal the win.

Redshirt senior Trevor Kaylid (Cary, N.C./Green Hope) improved to 2-1 after holding the Flames scoreless for 5 1/3 innings on five hits.  Freshman Turner Phelps (Roanoke, Va./Lord Botetourt) allowed an unearned run with two strikeouts in two innings.  Knight picked up his third save, allowing one run on three hits in 1 1/3 innings.

Redshirt junior Brett Sellers (Greencastle, Pa./Greencastle-Antrim) was 2-for-3 at the plate with his first inning ground-rule double extending his career-best hitting streak to 13 games.  Garner’s two-run home run was his second of the season.

Senior Ryan Page (Cranberry Township, Pa.) took the loss for Liberty, allowing two runs on four hits in five innings.  Sophomore Dane Beakler (York, Pa.) allowed just one run on one hit with seven strikeouts over the final four innings.

Junior Tim Rotola (Wichita, Kansas) was 3-for-5 with a run scored for the Flames.  Keller had two hits and an RBI.  Liberty left 11 runners on the bases, going 1-for-10 with runners in scoring position.

Both teams had scoring opportunities in the early innings that went by the wayside, including the Flames leaving the bases loaded in the first.  The first runs went on the board in the fourth inning when Bujakowski hit a two-out single to right centerfield and Garner followed with a home run over the wall in right field.

The game remained scoreless until the eighth when the Dukes loaded the bases with no outs.  A wild pitch brought in a run, but JMU couldn’t put anything else together with a pair of strikeouts and a flyout.

Liberty’s first run came in the bottom of the eighth on a fielder’s choice groundout by Brown.  The leadoff batter reached on a fielding error, and the bases loaded with one out on a hit batter and a walk before the groundout.  After reloaded the bases, Knight entered to escape the jam, setting the stage for the dramatic ninth inning.

JMU will be back home on Thursday for a 3 p.m. contest against Stony Brook.

NOTE: In addition to the CAA Pitcher of the Week honor that he received Monday, sophomore pitcher Jason Kuhn (Stafford, Va./Brooke Point) was honored for a Ping!Baseball Spotlight Performance of the Week after retiring all 21 batters he faced last week.