(Montgomery AL) – Florida Memorial won its first-ever Black College World Series with a dramatic 5-4 victory over Albany State in Saturday’s championship game that lasted 19 innings and more than five hours at Riverwalk Stadium here.
It was the longest game in terms of innings in the history of the event and featured excellent pitching and some timely hitting from Gabriel Martinez, who drove in the winning run with a sacrifice fly in the 19th frame.
Levis Aguila looked to be the hero when he put the FMU ahead with a home run in the 17th inning, which ended an 11-inning scoring drought for both teams. However, Albany State’s Lavoisier Fisher tied the game in the bottom half of the frame with an RBI single.
It was an important moment for Fisher, who missed a chance to give Albany State the win when he struck out to end the 12th inning with the bases loaded. The key strikeout was part of a championship effort from Florida Memorial pitching.
Kyle Morrison started the game, but Jamal Johnson allowed a single run and four hits in 9.2 innings of brilliant work. Kevin Feliciano shut the door in the final two-plus innings to clinch the win.
It was the end of a four-day tournament with separate NCAA Division II and NAIA brackets.
On Friday, Albany State clinched the Division II Black College World Series bracket title with an 8-3 win over Edward Waters, while Florida Memorial won the NAIA side with a commanding 13-3 victory over Rust College.
Rust College’s Shemaar Stapleton won the Home Run Derby that preceded the championship game. Nate Lloyd of Albany State was the runner-up with one fewer home run than the champion.
