Gabe Albino knew he had to make up for an eighth inning error in last Wednesday’s District 11 6A championship against Parkland and he did it two ways with the game heading into the ninth inning.

His lead off triple put the pressure on Parkland in a deadlocked 1-1 ballgame and a shallow sac fly by Caleb Tereska gave Albino the shot to push ahead the winning run.

As he tagged back to third base, the play at the plate was a microcosm of a championship bout, as the throw home was on time, but Albino slid just to the side under the arm of the catcher’s mitt to give Liberty a 2-1 lead that would stick.

Sammy Kraihanzel closed things out with a 1-2-3 bottom of the frame and the Hurricanes rejoiced their first D11 championship since 2007.

“I was just trying to make a play after making the error and just did what I had to do,” said Albino. “Then the play at the plate was close. I slid to the outside and got my left hand in there. This means everything. We’ve been working for this since day one.”

The title was savoring for head coach Andy Pitsilos, who waited 10 years to be able to celebrate a district championship again, a wait that was well worth it with this year’s crop of players.

“I’m just so happy for these kids because they put in so much work,” Pitsilos said. “All the hard work, I’m just happy for them. It’s all about them. They’re great.”

Liberty (23-3) certainly was motivated to face Parkland (18-8), after the Trojans took home the EPC championship with a 6-3 victory two weeks ago.

For Kraihanzel, that game provided plenty of motivation, as he came in and dominated in 5 1/3 innings of relief action.

“I didn’t pitch very well in the EPC championship, but I had it going today,” said Kraihanzel, who didn’t allow any hits in his appearance last week. “Going into the ninth I just had throw strikes and let my fielders make plays and that’s what happened.”

And Liberty left Lehigh University’s Legacy Park with just enough plays and one memorable slide home to celebrate a deserved gold medal.

“That was a 50-50 shot there on that play and Gabe made a great slide,” said Pitsilos. “When you lead off with a triple, you better score. Tereska did a great job getting the ball off the bat and this was just a great team win.”