LYNCHBURG, Va. (Interstat) — Cannon Lee delivered a dominant bounce-back performance, and the UNC Greensboro bullpen held off a late Liberty rally as the Spartans edged the Flames 7-6 in a nonconference baseball game Tuesday afternoon at Liberty Baseball Stadium.

The Spartans evened the season series after dropping a 12-10 shootout to Liberty just two weeks prior. UNC Greensboro improved to 12-14 overall, while the Flames fell to 15-9.

The most critical phase of the game was the sixth inning, where Liberty’s comeback bid was ignited and then abruptly stifled. Trailing 7-2, the Flames loaded the bases with no outs against reliever JT Weaver. Designated hitter Jordan Jaffe, who had homered earlier, walked and scored on Nick Barone’s two-run triple down the right-field line, cutting the deficit to 7-4. With the tying run at the plate and only one out, UNC Greensboro manager called upon Jake Colucci from the bullpen. Colucci promptly struck out Landon Scilley swinging, and catcher Tanner Berry then threw out Easton Swofford attempting to steal second before a pop-out ended the threat. Colucci’s escape preserved a three-run lead and shifted momentum back to the Spartans.

Lee, UNC Greensboro’s top star, was the story early. After struggling in his last outing against East Tennessee State, the Spartans’ starter was superb, pitching five innings and allowing just two earned runs on no hits. He walked four and struck out five. His effort provided crucial stability for a Spartans team seeking consistency.

Libercy starter Tristan Dietrich lasted just 1 1/3 innings, relieved by Jackson Evans after loading the bases. Evans provided a strong bridge, striking out six over 2 2/3 innings, but the Spartans chipped away.

UNC Greensboro built its lead with steady offense, tallying 12 hits. They took a 1-0 lead in the second on Luke Jenkins’ sacrifice bunt. After Barone’s sacrifice fly got Liberty on the board in the bottom of the frame, Jaffe’s solo homer in the third made it 7-2.

The Spartans added single runs in the fourth, sixth, and seventh innings. Ethan Brittain drove in a run with a single in the fourth, Tanner Berry hit an RBI double in the sixth, and Jacob Mueller and JJ Parsons contributed run-scoring hits in a three-run seventh that pushed the lead to 7-2.

Liberty’s final push came in the seventh, capitalizing on a Spartans error. With two on, Jaffe lifted a sacrifice fly and Jaxon Sorenson grounded out to drive in another, both runs unearned, making it 7-6. Colucci, however, settled in to pitch three hitless innings of relief, striking out three. Mayson Dear worked a perfect ninth, allowing a single but inducing a game-ending groundout from Jaffe to earn the save.

Berry led the Spartans’ offense, going 3 for 4 with two RBIs. Mueller added two hits and an RBI. For Liberty, Jaffe finished 2 for 3 with a home run, two RBIs and two runs scored. Barone had two hits and two RBIs.

The game defied the pregame projections from Interstat, which gave Liberty a 66.2% probability to win and simulated a final score of 6-5 in favor of the Flames.

UNC Greensboro opens a Southern Conference series at Wofford on Friday. Liberty begins Conference USA play at home against Florida International, also on Friday.