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Baseball J.T. Wilcox, Sports Information Director

FMU Baseball Taking On Talladega College In Black College World Series Opening Round Tuesday

AT A GLANCE
FMU Lions (21-23) vs. Talladega College Tornadoes (Ala.) (18-27)
When: Tuesday, May 11, 2022
Where: Montgomery, Ala. | Riverwalk Stadium
First Pitch: 1:30 p.m. EST
Last Meeting: April 12, 2019, Loss 3-4
Live Stream: Link
Tickets: Purchase
 
MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. – Florida Memorial University's road to capturing a 2022 Black College World Series championship begins this week when it is scheduled to take on Talladega College in the opening round of the tournament – which is presented by Tyson Foods and the Montgomery Biscuits minor league baseball team – Tuesday afternoon at Riverwalk Stadium in Montgomery, Alabama.
 
BCWSFeaturing eight baseball teams from historically Black colleges or universities (HBCUs) – four from NCAA Division-II and four from the NAIA – Florida Memorial is the No. 1 seed on the NAIA side as the teams on each side of the bracket will play a double-elimination style tournament May 11-14.
 
The winners from the opening games will move on and face each other in the "winner's pool" game; the losers from the opening games will move into the "losers pool" and face other in an elimination game. The winner of the "winner's pool" game advances to the bracket championship while the loser will face the winner of the first "loser's pool" game. The two teams that have single losses will then face off in an elimination game, with the winner advancing to take on the unbeaten team in the "winner's pool". The unbeaten team could advance to the BCWS championship game with a single victory while the team with a single loss would need to defeat the unbeaten twice to advance.
 
The overall winner from each side of the bracket will play in a single-game playoff to determine the champion.
 
About The Lions (21-21)
  • FMU enters the BCWS as the No. 1 team on the NAIA side of the bracket after it ended the season as the highest-ranked team in the Black College Nines/Black College Sports Network polls.
  • Florida Memorial is making its second consecutive appearance in the Black College World Series. It won two games before being eliminated by eventual champion Bluefield State College (W. Va.).
  • The Lions ended their regular season flatly, though, dropping a weekend series to nationally ranked Keiser University – which kept Florida Memorial out of the Sun Conference postseason tournament.
  • Still, FMU had two players receive All-Sun Conference Second Team honors in freshman left-handed pitcher Isaias Espiritusantos and sophomore infielder Luis Ruiz. Espiritusantos led the team in earned-run average (ERA) and opposing batting average while Ruiz was the team's No. 1 in batting average (.372) and hits (55).
 
Scouting Talladega (18-27)
  • The No. 4 seed in the NAIA bracket, Talladega rolls into the BCWS as a team that sputtered to the finish line of its regular season.
  • The Tornadoes loss their final eight games of the season – including being the first team bounced from the Southern States Athletic Conference (SSAC) Tournament.
  • Talladega had one common opponent with the Lions – Thomas University – and the Tornadoes dropped the weekend series against TU 1-2 while FMU swept Thomas.
  • TC has shown it can be a solid offensive team, featuring six different players with batting averages over .300 – including a team-best .463 average for freshman catcher Miguel Oropeza. Oropeze also leads the team in doubles, triples, RBI, and is second in home runs.
  • Pitching has been the Tornadoes' bane this season. The team's overall ERA is 8.50 and No. 1 pitcher in terms of innings pitched, Ricardo Blackman, has an ERA of 7.20.
 
Series History
  • Florida Memorial trails the all-time series 0-1.
  • The only other previous meeting between the programs was during the 2019 season, a 3-4 loss at Talladega.
 
Keys To Victory
  • Pitching – when FMU's pitching staff finds its rhythm, the Lions have shown they can compete with any team in the country.
 
Follow Florida Memorial University Athletics on social media
Instagram: @GoFMULions/@LionsFMUBaseball | Twitter: @GoFMULions/@BaseballFMU | YouTube: Official FMU Lions
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Players Mentioned

Isaias Espiritusantos

#45 Isaias Espiritusantos

LHP
6' 4"
Freshman
Luis Ruiz

#3 Luis Ruiz

INF
5' 10"
Sophomore

Players Mentioned

Isaias Espiritusantos

#45 Isaias Espiritusantos

6' 4"
Freshman
LHP
Luis Ruiz

#3 Luis Ruiz

5' 10"
Sophomore
INF