As expected, the championship final fires up Jingu Stadium
The final game to decide the top collegiate baseball team in Japan was held on the sacred grounds of Jingu Stadium.The 73rd Japan National Collegiate Baseball Championship was the final day of a six-day tournament.So far, 27 teams representing university baseball leagues from across Japan had played 26 games at the Tokyo Dome and Meiji Jingu Stadium.The teams advancing to the 27th and final game were Waseda University (Tokyo Big6 Baseball League) and Aoyama Gakuin University (Tohto University Baseball League).
Both teams were considered strong contenders to win the championship even before the tournament began.
The Waseda side huddling before the game
From before the game, many students, alumni and fans gathered in their own cheering sections to engage in a distinctive battle of cheering.
Aoyama Gakuin’s cheering section looking excited even before the game starts
Waseda and Aoyama Gakuin, both of which have won the National Collegiate Baseball Championship five times, are competing to see who will claim the title for the sixth time. Under a clear early summer sky, the umpire shouts “Play ball” to begin the heated battle.
A fierce battle from the 1st inning
Waseda’s starting pitcher is 4th-year Taisei Shikada (Tokyo/Waseda Jitsugyo HS).At a towering 187 cm, he is a pitcher boasting an enviable combination of fastballs reaching 149 km/h and a variety of breaking balls.
Taisei Shikada (Waseda) overcame injury to pitch a strong game in the final
He responded to the expectations of manager Satoru Komiyama, who said, “I think he was itching to pitch again after recovering from the injury he sustained in an exhibition game in early spring,” with a dynamic showing.
Against pitcher Shikada, Aoyama Gakuin lead-off batter Natsuki Fujiwara (Osaka Toin HS) reached base with a single to center. With one out and one on, Koichiro Oda (Gifu/Chukyo HS) hit a deep fly ball over the center fielder’s head.
Lead-off batter Natsuki Fujiwara (Aoyama Gakuin) starts the 1st inning with a hit
Yudai Ose (Tokyo/Teikyo HS) made a great catch as the stands fell silent for a moment, wondering if Aoyama Gakuin would strike first with a hit to center.With two outs and runners on first and second, Misho Nishikawa (Kyoto/Ryukoku University Heian HS) smashed a liner to right field only to have Tsubasa Yoshino (Aichi/Toho HS) field this nicely. Waseda was thus able to turn the tide with two big plays from their outfielders.
Aoyama Gakuin’s starter, Masaki Nakanishi (Chiben Wakayama HS), is a formidable pitcher in this own right, boasting a fastball that reaches up to 152 km/h.He is a pitcher with an impressive track record, who led his alma mater to its first Japanese High School Baseball Championship (known commonly as Koshien) victory in 21 years during his third year of high school.
Koshien champ Masaki Nakanishi (Aoyama Gakuin) is the starter
However, the Waseda batters picked up momentum thanks to their good defense in the top of the 1st inning.With two outs, third batter Tsubasa Yoshino, and the fourth batter, Taichi Inde (Aichi/Chukyo University HS), hit back-to-back singles and walked to load the bases, putting Koshien’s winning pitcher in a tough spot. Yet he didn’t give up the first run, getting Shuhei Ozawa (Gunma/Takasaki University of Health and Welfare HS) to ground out to first after the batter had persistently worked his way to a full count.
Grabbing the lead with flawless base running
Pitchers Shikada and Nakanishi regained their true form after escaping their first inning pinches. And in the middle innings, when the game was beginning to look like a pitchers’ duel, Waseda tried to shake things up with their base-running.
When Ozawa, the first batter in the bottom of the 4th, reached base on a walk, Manager Komiyama ordered the next batter, Yamato Umemura (Waseda Jitsugyo HS), to sacrifice bunt.The fleet-footed Umemura laid down an exquisite bunt that forced catcher Kai Watabe (Chiben Wakayama HS) into making a poor throw to first.With no outs and runners on first and third, Waseda created a scoring opportunity with its finesse play.
Yamato Umemura (Waseda) reaches base with an exquisite bunt
At that point, when an overthrown ball came back to the infield, Ozawa, who had made it to third base, made a dash toward home plate! He slid into home, which had no backup, as the catcher Watabe had moved out of position to field the bunt.Waseda used its legs to take the lead without producing a hit.
Taking advantage of a gap in coverage, Shuhei Ozawa (Waseda)steals home to score the opening run
Ozawa also displayed skillful base running in the third round against Kyushu Sangyo University (Fukuoka Big6 Baseball League). In the post-game interview he said, “I’m confident in my base running (which is also a feature of my alma mater) as well as my defense.”The “mobile destruction baseball” championed by his alma mater, Takasaki University of Health and Welfare High School, proved its effectiveness even on the grand stage of university baseball. When Waseda finally broke the deadlock, the momentum shifted dramatically in their favor and was accompanied by a thunderous chorus of the Waseda cheer song “And to the Azure Sky” from the third-base cheer squad.
The tall southpaw refuses to hand over the momentum
With no outs and a runner on third and Waseda gaining momentum, Aoyama Gakuin’s Manager Yasunori Ando showed no hesitation in sending 189-cm southpaw Fergus Vaderna to the mound.With fastball reaching up to 146 km/h and deadly slider as weapons, he is a pitcher delivering standout performances as a set-up pitcher for Aoyama Gakuin.
Fergus Vaderna (Aoyama Gakuin) fends off the pinch of a runner on third with no outs
Even at this critical juncture, Vaderna remained composed on the mound, delivering an impressive performance by striking out the next two batters in succession and meeting the bench’s expectations.
Waseda took a one-run lead, but the team were unable to seize control of the flow of the game and ended their attack for this inning.
Quickly turning the tables with the same focus that lead to victory in the Tohto League Championship
“Aoyama Gakuin, competing in a tough league playoff, showed a relentless determination to prevent even a single run,” commented Waseda Manager Komiyama after the game, praising Aoyama Gakuin’s focus in shutting down the opportunity for additional runs.
That very focus from Aoyama Gakuin led to a dramatic turnaround, as they launched an all-out offensive immediately after escaping the pinch, securing a swift reversal of the momentum.
In the top of the 5th, Tatsuya Matsumoto (Iwate/Morioka University Affiliated HS) hit a fly ball between the shortstop Shu Yamagata (Tokyo/Waseda Gakuin HS) and center fielder Ose.
Yamagata, who was chasing down the ball, was unable to catch it even though his glove made contact.Seeing the ball rolling into left field, Matsumoto quickly reached second base. The side then advanced the tying runner to third base with a sacrifice fly.
With the roaring support of a large cheer squad behind him, Tatsuya Nakata (Aoyama Gakuin) smacks a game-tying RBI
Tatsuya Nakata (Ishikawa/Seiryo HS) then came to the plate and made his bat shine! A clutch double to right brought in the tying run and ignited a thunderous shouts of joy from the Aoyama Gakuin cheer squad.
Next with two outs, Fujiwara got his second hit of the day, a single to center, to turn the game around.With the same concentration that had won them the Tohto championship, the team turned the game around immediately after a tough spot.
Natsuki Fujiwara (Aoyama Gakuin) ready to drive the go-ahead RBI to center
Desperately defending against each other’s attacks with a reliever strategy
“In our original plan, he was to pitch only through the 3rd inning, but his performance was so good,” said Manager Komiyama. Despite allowing a go-ahead run from an unlucky hit, pitcher Shikada set the stage for the game, and Waseda proceeded with their planned bullpen rotation.
Pitchers Konan Miyagi (Saitama/Urawa Gakuin HS) and Kazuki Kozai (Fukuoka/Kyushu International University HS) held the fort waiting for support from teammates, while Aoyama Gakuin sent Taisei Suzuki (Tokyo/Tokai University Sugao HS) to the mound in the hopes of securing a victory.
In the top of the 7th, Waseda escaped having runners on first and second with no outs, while Aoyama Gakuin also got out of a one-out, bases-loaded jam in the bottom of the 8th.Waseda still trailed by one run as it went into the bottom of the 9th.
The Waseda cheer squad passionately performing “And to the Azure Sky”, believing in a comeback in the final inning
In the bottom of the 9th, would Waseda tie the game or would Aoyama Gakuin close it out? With the Waseda cheering section belting out “And to the Azure Sky” at the top of their lungs, lead-off batter Yamagata drew a walk, creating an opportunity to tie the game.
However, pitcher Suzuki calmly retired both the third batter, Yoshino, who had hit a massive go-ahead homer in the third round, and the fourth batter, Inde. The fifth batter, Kenshin Maeda (Osaka Toin HS), then grounded out to first.As soon as Suzuki downed the last batter, his teammates rushed over to him, who raised his hands high into the air.
The Aoyama Gakuin battery embracing the moment the game is clinched
Aoyama Gakuin narrowly defeated Waseda, who was aiming to reclaim the championship for the first time in nine years, securing their sixth overall victory and second consecutive win.They shared the joy of victory with the students in the first-base side cheering section.
The Aoyama Gakuin cheering section celebrating the school’s sixth victory and second in a row
