ENID, OKLAHOMA — Pearl River College baseball won the NJCAA Division II World Series championship on May 30, 2026, defeating South Mountain College 4-3 in 11 innings at David Allen Memorial Ballpark in Enid, Oklahoma. The Wildcats secured the title on a walk-off hit by Ethan Garner in the 11th inning after a fly ball was lost in the sun by South Mountain outfielder Will Strand, allowing Jackson Estes to score the winning run.
The victory capped a 50-11 season for Pearl River and marked the program’s second national championship in five years. The team went undefeated in the World Series, posting a 4-0 record in Enid to claim the title.
Jackson Beddoe was named Most Valuable Player of the tournament after going 8-for-15 with five extra-base hits, six RBIs, and five runs scored. Drew Harrison and Jackson Estes joined him on the All-Tournament team. Estes hit .467 in the series with three home runs and five RBIs, while Harrison posted a 1.50 ERA with 15 strikeouts and three walks over 12 innings pitched, allowing just two runs.
Pearl River earned an at-large bid to the World Series after a 13-0 loss to Jones College in the Region 23 Tournament. Despite that setback, the team rallied to win four straight games in Enid against a South Mountain squad that finished its season 52-18.
"They never quit. They always believed," Pearl River coach Michael Avalon said in a press release. "This was our goal on day one — to get back here. We didn't know how it would work or how it would look, but they never stopped believing."