Webster’s heroics keep Birmingham-Southern’s season going at D-III World Series

The school is closed but the celebration continues for Birmingham-Southern.

Panthers slugger Jackson Webster hit a two-run homer in the bottom of the ninth to keep the dream alive for Birmingham-Southern here at the Division III Baseball World Series. The school officially closed on Friday, but the baseball team defeated Randolph-Macon 9-7 on Saturday at Classic Park in Eastlake, Ohio.

“Baseball miracle, right?,” Webster said. “The storybook isn’t finished.”

It’s an unbelievable story and that was before Webster’s walk-off blast to left field. Facing an 0-2 count, he had already hit a two-run homer earlier in the game. Webster hit his first bomb in the first inning to give Birmingham-Southern a 2-0 lead.

The game went into fairytale mode from there.

“Just true grit,” Birmingham-Southern coach Jan Weisberg said. “The fight of these guys is the story of the night.”

Birmingham-Southern led 4-0 in the bottom of the ninth, but then squandered that lead. Randolph-Macon then took a 7-4 lead in the eighth inning and it appeared like Birmingham-Southern was history.

But just like Weisberg said on Friday after BSC’s opening-series loss, no lead is ever safe in Division III baseball.

Birmingham-Southern tied the game with three runs in the bottom of the eighth and then second-baseman Andrew Dutton led off the bottom of the ninth with a walk. Webster was next up and delivered the Disney-esque drama.

Facing financial trouble, Birmingham-Southern College officially shut down on Friday. The school’s spirit remains alive through its feisty baseball team, though. Now it’s on to Sunday and another date with destiny for a team that refuses to quit. Birmingham-Southern plays at 2 p.m. CT on Sunday against the loser of a game between Salve Regina and Wisconsin-Whitewater.

Win or lose, it’s a fairytale for the players of Birmingham-Southern. Their story has gained national attention and a documentary film crew is embedded with the team here in Northwest Ohio.