Schedule for the first two days of the 67th NAIA Baseball National Championship, Friday-Saturday, May 24-31, Harris Field, Lewiston, ID (all times PDT):
Friday, 8:35 AM: #8 seed Kansas Wesleyan (48-10) vs. #9 Arizona Christian (36-19)
Kansas Wesleyan (Salina) is making their first trip to the Baseball National Championship. They won the regular season championship of the Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference by a four-game margin. Twitter: @KWUBaseball
Nickname: Coyotes
Rankings: #20 in coaches' poll
Quality wins: 3-0 vs. Tabor, Concordia-Nebraska, LSU-Shreveport
Top position players: SS Jarrett Gable (.386, 19 HR, 76 RBI), C Tyler Favretto (Montreal; .358, 17 HR, 57 RBI), OF Kendall Foster (.353, 23 HR, 61 RBI), OF Jacob Williamson (.323, 17 HR, 58 RBI), 3B Reece Bishop (.315, 13 HR, 56 RBI)
Top pitchers: RHP Jarrett Brannen (11-1, 3.94 ERA, 77 K), RHP Brett Maddock (9-2, 5.35 ERA, 75 K), RHP K.T. Gearlds (2-0, 0.99 ERA, 40 K), RHP Ritter Steinmann (2-1, 1.99 ERA, 49 K)
Coach: Bill Neale, tenth season
Outlook: Will be fortunate to get a win. And if they get by Arizona Christian, their next game will be against Southeastern.
Arizona Christian (Glendale) is making their first trip to the Baseball National Championship. They finished third in the Golden State Athletic Conference. Twitter: @ACUBaseball1
Nickname: Firestorm
Rankings: Unranked in coaches' poll
Quality wins: Tennessee Wesleyan, Oklahoma City, Lewis-Clark State, British Columbia
Top position players: OF Marques Titialii (.384, 24 HR, 83 RBI), OF Andrew Ivy (.344, 8 HR, 43 RBI), 1B/LHP Trey Tarver (.343, 12 HR, 44 RBI, and 0-6, 5.18 ERA, 43 K on the mound), OF/IF Kane Klaunis (.330, 12 HR, 54 RBI), OF/1B Jared Anderson (.326, 5 HR, 41 RBI). Titialii's 24 home runs are eighth-best in the NAIA.
Top pitchers: RHP Adrian Santa Cruz (9-4, 4.09 ERA, 100 K), RHP Eli Elliott (7-4, 3.20 ERA, 99 K), RHP Chay Esqueda (2-0, 3.86 ERA, 47 K), RHP Jackson Hohensee (4-2, 6.04 ERA, 73 K in 44 IP). Santa Cruz pitched a complete game shutout vs. Lewis-Clark State in the Opening Round.
Coach: Joe McDonald, sixth season
Outlook: After an OK season in a strong conference, the Firestorm got here by winning the strongest opening round bracket. They could do some damage.
11:35 AM: #4 Hope International (40-15) vs. #5 Reinhardt (41-16)
Hope International (Fullerton, CA) is making their second appearance in the Baseball National Championship. The first one was in 2017. They won the Golden State Athletic Conference regular season championship. Twitter: @HIURoyals
Nickname: Royals
Rankings: #10 in coaches' poll
Quality wins: 7-0 vs. Ottawa-Arizona, 1-1 vs. Westmont, 2-1 vs. Arizona Christian, 3-3 vs. Jessup, Central Methodist
Top position players: IF J.J. Cruz (.408, 12 HR, 70 RBI), IF David Rivera (.389, 12 HR, 53 RBI), IF Alex Moreno (.387, 6 HR, 43 RBI), OF Dean Tolgo (.353, 12 HR, 44 RBI)
Top pitchers: RHP Justin Drury (9-0, 3.41 ERA, 61 K), RHP Trey Seeley (9-3, 3.95 ERA, 116 K), RHP Steven Ordorica (2-1, 2.88 ERA, 40 K), RHP Boom Ward (0-0, 2.60 ERA, 29 K)
Coach: Larry Mahoney, third season
Outlook: The Royals are the champions of a strong conference, and had the best strength of schedule coming into the opening round. They are a contender.
Read more: NAIA Baseball National Championship preview for 2024