It was everything you dream about as a kid playing in the backyard.
Bases loaded, tied game, a chance to deliver your team a playoff win. It was all there for Josh Fernald, who stepped to the plate after Columbia scored two runs to tie Lincoln 4-4 in the Region 1-5A semifinals.
He was just trying to hit a pitch up the middle. Instead, he sent a ball sky high toward center field.
“Going back and thinking about it, I was the last possible batter that could be up, which is just very crazy,” Fernald said. “I was just thinking to myself that this could be my last at-bat. It was crazy. Even going back and thinking about it, it could’ve ended right there. Just coming up to the plate I was thinking to myself, ‘all right, the bases are loaded with two outs. We just need a run to win.’ I honestly didn’t try to get under the ball. I was just trying to hit it up the middle, but it’s difficult to put words into it.”
That’s because the ball kept going, and going, and going. When it finally landed, it dropped over the outfield wall for a walk-off grand slam, leaving Fernald speechless as he rounded the bases with his hands on his helmet.
A kid’s dream come true.
“Hitting the walk-off grand slam is just always going to be something I think about, which is really cool,” Fernald said.
It capped an 8-4 win for the Tigers, who had trailed 4-0, and kept their playoff run alive. Columbia then beat Clay 7-1 in the regional final — on the arm of a complete-game effort from Fernald — to advance back to the state semifinals for a second straight year.
Fernald played a part in every playoff win, also starting on the mound in a combined no-hitter in Columbia’s 14-0 win over Pine Forest in the regional quarterfinals. It was part of a stellar senior season for Fernald, who went 9-1 as a pitcher with an area-low 0.56 ERA and 86 strikeouts in 50 innings, while also leading the area with 33 RBIs and seven triples at the plate where he hit .342 with a .485 on-base percentage that included three home runs, 31 runs scored, 13 stolen bases and six doubles.
When he wasn’t pitching, he was playing first base for the Tigers where he made only one error and posted a .989 fielding percentage. All those numbers have earned Fernald the title of LCR Baseball Player of the Year.
“I knew he had the ability,” Columbia head coach Chris Howard said. “All I was asking of him was just to become one of the guys that everybody looked up to. And he did exactly what I asked him to do.”
Fernald’s pitching numbers improved in his first season at Columbia after transferring from Suwannee. He dropped his ERA from 2.88 while increasing his strikeouts per inning from 1.48 to 1.7, becoming the ace for the staff that needed one following the graduation of Brent Howard and Truitt Todd.
A slider was added to his repertoire, which he says he “fell in love with,” to go with his fastball and changeup, though he occasionally would also mix in a curveball or splitter. Fernald credits part of his improvement to throwing in the offseason with his pitching coach Chris Marlo, who worked on his mechanics through the fall, winter and into the spring to turn him into one of the best pitchers in the state.
His numbers led to him to finishing second in the voting for the Dairy Farmer’s Class 5A Player of the Year earlier this month. But Fernald deflects credit for his success partly to his teammates behind him, while also pointing out his one hiccup in the state semifinal where he suffered his only loss of the season in a 5-2 defeat to American Heritage.
As appreciative as he is of the accolades, he wanted nothing more than a state title.
“The numbers are cool and all, but at the end of the day we didn’t get to where we wanted to,” Fernald said. “We didn’t win our state championship that we wanted to win. We got there, which is great, but we didn’t win and it happens. I wouldn’t say I’m satisfied but I’m very happy with how I did this year. I had a lot of help from my infield, my outfield, my catcher. It’s a team thing. It’s not a one-person show. It’s everybody in the field that matters and everybody in the dugout keeping their energy up. It’s not just me. These guys that played with me are just as important as I am in this thing right here.”
As for his performance at the plate, Fernald says he was satisfied. He made it a point to enjoy his last season as a hitter before moving on to play at UCF, where he’ll solely be a pitcher.
His totals for RBIs, triples, doubles, run scored and stolen bases were all career highs.
“This year I was just trying to have fun at the plate honestly,” Fernald said. “I knew at the next level I wasn’t going to swing it so I was like, ‘it’s my last year hitting in baseball so I’m just going to make the most of it and just have as much fun as I can.’”
Fernald’s season is one Howard won’t forget anytime soon. It goes down as one of, if not the best ever at Columbia.
“He grew up a lot,” Howard said. “He became the man.”
ALL-AREA TEAM
P: Josh Fernald
Columbia, senior
The LCR’s Baseball Player of the Year was the top pitcher in the area, going 9-1 with an area-low 0.56 ERA while striking out 86 batters in 50 innings. Offensively he led the area with 33 RBIs and seven triples, hitting .342 with a .485 on-base percentage that included three home runs, 31 runs scored, 13 stolen bases and six doubles. The UCF commit posted a .989 fielding percentage, making only one error while splitting time at first base.
P: Matthew Jenkins
Lafayette, senior
Pitched a perfect 9-0 record with a 1.51 ERA, striking out 85 batters in 51 innings. Offensively he hit .358 and had a .400 on-base percentage with 28 RBIs, four home runs, five doubles and one triple. The Santa Fe College commit posted a .966 fielding percentage, making only one error while splitting time in the outfield.
C: Hunter Vann
Lafayette, senior
Made only one error behind the plate and finished with a .995 field percentage. Hit .321 and had a .434 on-base percentage with 22 RBIs, four home runs, five doubles and a triple.
1B: Ethan Layton
Suwannee, senior
Led the Bulldogs with a .359 batting average and had a .475 on-base percentage with 16 RBIs, 13 runs, 4 doubles, 1 home runs and seven stolen bases. Posted a .991 fielding percentage, making only one error.
2B: Hyatt Richardson
Lafayette, sophomore
Hit .333 and had a .432 on-base percentage with 10 RBIs, 13 runs scored, one double, one home run and four stolen bases. Posted a .907 field percentage splitting time between second base and the mound, where he went 9-1 with a 2.33 ERA and 72 strikeouts in 63 innings.
SS: Dawson Mock
Lafayette, senior
Led the Hornets in every offensive category with a .405 batting average, .567 on-base percentage, 40 runs scored, 32 RBIs, six home runs (tied for area most), nine doubles, two triples and 27 stolen bases. The USF commit posted a .921 fielding percentage.
3B: Ayden Phillips
Columbia, sophomore
Led the Tigers with a .452 batting average and had .516 on-base percentage with 29 RBIs, two home runs, five doubles and a triple. Scored 29 runs and stole nine bases while posting an .830 fielding percentage.
OF: Carston Palmer
Columbia, senior
Hit .317 and had a .418 on-base percentage with 17 RBIs, three doubles, three triples, 26 runs and 21 stolen bases. The St. John’s River commit didn’t make a single error in 38 chances.
OF: Camdon Frier
Columbia, junior
Tied for the area lead with six home runs while hitting .314 with 24 RBIs, six doubles, and a triple. The Florida State commit a .443 on-base percentage, scoring 23 runs and stealing 16 bases, while posting an .875 fielding percentage.
OF: Matt Dumas
Columbia, senior
Led the area with 42 runs scored and 35 stolen bases. The Lake Sumter State College commit hit .365 and had a .518 on-base percentage with 11 RBIs, a triple and a home run while posting a .938 fielding percentage.
DH: Caden Coker
Branford, senior
Led the area with a .455 batting average and a .620 on-base percentage, finishing with 14 RBIs, 23 runs, 16 stolen bases, three doubles and a triple. Posted a .944 fielding percentage playing first base.
UTIL: Hayden Gustavson
Columbia, senior
Led the Tigers with a .550 on-base percentage and eight doubles while finishing with 32 RBIs, three triples and two home runs. The State College of Florida commit had a .987 fielding percentage as a catcher and relief pitcher, making only three errors while posting a 0.40 ERA with 23 strikeouts and three saves in 17 2/3 innings.
UTIL: Garrett Taylor
Lafayette, freshman
Hit .371 and had a .465 on-base percentage with five home runs, 21 RBIs, 17 runs and five doubles. Posted an .865 fielding percentage between second base and the mound, where he had a 0.97 ERA with 26 strikeouts in 21 2/3 innings.
COACH OF THE YEAR
Tim Hanson, Lafayette
Led the Hornets to an area-best 22-5 record, a District 6-1A title, a Region 3-1A title and a Class 1A runner-up finish. Lafayette was ranked No. 1 in Class 1A for most of the year and looked the part of a state title contender, defeating Wakulla Christian 11-1 and then Union County 14-3 in regionals to reach the Final Four for the third time in program history. Hanson’s squad defeated Holmes County 9-6 in the state semifinals but came up short of winning the program’s second state title, falling to Chipley 10-1 in the championship.