The NAIA Coaches' poll for April 17, 2012, with Boyd Nation's Iterative Strength Rating (ISR):

First place votes: LSU-Shreveport 18, Azusa Pacific 2

Azusa Pacific is #1 in Strength of Schedule

LSU-Shreveport (19-4 RRAC) won two of three close games against Texas-Brownsville, 1-2, 8-7, and 10-9. The loss ended a 16-game winning streak, and was Jared Mortensen's first loss of the season. Zach Armstrong went the seven-inning distance for the Scorpions, allowed only three hits, struck out six. (Mortensen allowed four hits, struck out ten.) 2B Scott Frasier hit a sacrifice fly for the winning run for the Scorpions. SS Manny Estrada hit a home run to win the second game, and he drew a bases-loaded walk to send in the winning run in the third game. The Pilots visit William Carey April 18, host Texas Wesleyan April 20-21, and close their regular season at Division III Centenary April 24. -14. The Pilots lead the Red River Athletic Conference, and can clinch the pennant with one win against Texas Wesleyan.

Read more: Top 25 and recap for April 17

The nine sites for the 2012 Opening Round tournaments will be:

The Opening Round tournaments will be played May 10-14. The nine winners and host Lewis-Clark State will make up the field for the NAIA Baseball National Championship in Lewiston, ID May 25-June 1.

The fields for the Opening Round tournaments will be announced on May 6.

The NAIA Coaches' poll for April 10, 2012, with Boyd Nation's Iterative Strength Rating (ISR):

First place votes: LSU-Shreveport 17, Oklahoma City 1, Azusa Pacific 1

Azusa Pacific is #1 in Strength of Schedule

LSU-Shreveport (17-3 RRAC) swept Houston-Victoria 9-0, 3-1, and 8-0. Matt Lackie pitched a three-hit shutout in the first game, and Jared Mortensen pitched a seven-inning three-hit shutout in the third game, struck out eleven. Logan Norris nearly got a third shutout, but the Jaguars scored a run in the last inning. SS Manny Estrada hit a two-RBI triple. A scheduled game at Division II Southern Arkansas was rained out. Mortensen has an ERA of 1.09, third-best in the NAIA. The Pilots host Texas-Brownsville April 13-14. The Pilots have won 14 straight, and lead the Red River Athletic Conference; Texas-Brownsville is second with a with a 15-6 conference record.

Lee (21-3 SSAC) defeated Cumberland 6-3, and swept three games against Southern Polytechnic, 9-7, 6-5, and 7-0. 1B Roberto Reyes hit a grand slam home run with two out in the bottom of the ninth to win the first game against Southern Polytechnic. LF Mike Moore hit a sacrifice fly in the bottom of the seventh of a seven-inning game for the winning run in the second game. Vince Spilker, Kyle Briner, and Andy Hillis combined for the shutout in the third game; 2B Blake Barber batted in three runs. The Flames host Tennessee Wesleyan April 11, and Auburn-Montgomery April 13-14. The Flames and #4 Faulkner continue to be tied for the Southern States Athletic Conference lead.

Oklahoma City (18-3 SAC) won two of three games against Rogers State, 5-3, 1-3, and 6-5 (eight innings, scheduled for seven). SS Chris Muñoz scored the winning run in the first game on a sacrifice fly by RF Dane Phillips; Muñoz went 3-for-4 with a home run. Brandon Bargas went the distance for the Hillcats in the second game, held the Stars to five hits, struck out ten. All three of the Hillcats' runs came on a home run by 2B Hector Rivera in the third inning, and Bargas had a shutout going into the seventh. 1B Miguel Beltran batted in the winning run with a fielder's choice in the third game; Patrick Goelz, who held the Hillcats scoreless over the last 2 2/3 innings, got the win in relief. The Stars host Oklahoma Christian April 12 and 14, and visit Oklahoma Christian April 13. The Stars lead the Sooner Athletic Conference; #x Oklahoma Baptist is in second place with a 13-5 record.

Read more: Top 25 and recap for April 10

The NAIA Coaches' poll for April 3, 2012, with Boyd Nation's Iterative Strength Rating (ISR):

First place votes: LSU-Shreveport 15, Azusa Pacific 2, Lee 1, Oklahoma City 1

Azusa Pacific is #1 in Strength of Schedule

LSU-Shreveport (17-3 RRAC) defeated Division III Louisiana College 5-1, and swept three games at Southwest Assemblies of God, 18-2, 8-2, and 10-6. The Pilots outhit Louisiana College 15-3. They scored ten runs in the top of the ninth in the first game against SAGU, allowed three hits. C David Dorton hit an inside-the-park home run. 3B Devin Greco went 3-for-4 with a double and an RBI in the second game, and 3-for-4 with three RBI in the third game. The Pilots visit Division II Southern Arkansas April 4, and host Houston-Victoria April 6-7. The Pilots lead the Red River Athletic Conference; Texas-Brownsville is second with a with a 13-5 conference record.

Oklahoma City (16-2 SAC) swept three games against Saint Gregory's, 7-2, 6-2, and 12-5. 1B Miguel Beltran, LF Kale Gaden, and SS Chris Muñoz hit home runs in the first game. RF Dane Phillips went 2-for-2 with a home run and two RBI in the second game. Phillips moved to catcher for the third game, went 3-for-3 with a double and three RBI. The Stars host Rogers State April 5, and visit Rogers State April 7. The Stars lead the Sooner Athletic Conference; #7 Oklahoma Baptist and Lubbock Christian are tied for second place with 11-4 records.

Read more: Top 25 and recap for April 3

Los Sultanes (Sultans) lead the Northern Division of the Mexican League with an 11-3 record, and they won two of three in at series at Oaxaca March 30-April 1. They got a convincing 12-3 win in the first game of the series. In the second game, the Guerreros got two runs in the bottom of the ninth, on a home run by Barbaro Canizares and an RBI single by Erick Rodriguez, to win it 9-8.

RHP Sergio Valenzuela got the start for the Guerreros, and he was lucky to get out of the first inning. The first two batters of the game, CF Sergio Perez and 2B Maxwell Leon, got base hits, then RF Karim Garcia hit a three-run home run. The Guerreros needed a double play and a baserunner caught between third and home to get end the first inning. After this shaky start, Valenzuela settled down and allowed only two hits over the next five innings, and struck out six. He also pitched his way out of a jam in the fifth. The Sultanes loaded the bases with one out on a walk, a hit by Perez, and another walk. Valenzuela proceeded to strike out Garcia, then ended the inning by striking out Michel Abreu, who is batting .449.

Read more: Sultanes de Monterrey 6, Guerreros de Oaxaca 3

The NAIA Coaches' poll for March 26, 2012, with Boyd Nation's Iterative Strength Rating (ISR):

First place votes: Lee 13, LSU-Shreveport 3, Oklahoma City 1, Azusa Pacific 3

Azusa Pacific is #1 in Strength of Schedule

Lee (17-1 SSAC) won two games against Freed-Hardeman 5-2 and 6-5, and swept three games against Brewton-Parker, 5-4, 2-0, and 15-3. DH Corey Davis hit a walk-off home run in the second game against Freed-Hardeman to give coach Mark Brew his 300^th win. 1B Roberto Reyes went 2-for-4 with an RBI in the first game against Brewton-Parker, and 2-for-6 with a grand slam home run in the third game. Patrick Merkling and Jose Samayoa combined for a two-hit shutout in the second game. Merkling is 7-0, 0.83 ERA (third-best in the NAIA), with 62 strikeouts. The Flames visit Southern Wesleyan March 30-31. The Flames lead the Southern States Athletic Conference; Faulkner is second with a 15-3 record.

Read more: Top 25 and recap for March 26

Mike Grahovac is the Head Coach of the defending NAIA national champion Concordia-Irvine eagles. He was interviewed after a non-conference win over Patten on February 17.

Bob Broughton, courtesyrunner.com: You just got a complete game from Brett Clapper.

Mike Grahovac: He threw very well today. He's a returning guy for us, and we needed that from our pitching staff today.

BB: You did pretty well offensively, but Steven McMichael got the hit that mattered, as it turned out.

MG: Yeah, he didn't start the first few games this year, but we got him out there, and he's been hitting the ball all over the place. We got him to start today, and he had a big hit for us.

BB: You were up against pretty good pitching for the first seven innings.

MG: That guy out there [Issac Duran] was throwing the ball really well today, off-speed, fast balls, locating, he was doing really well.

Read more: Interview with Concordia-Irvine Coach Mike Grahovac

The Guerreros (Warriors) de Oaxaca of the Mexican League won their season opener against the Pericos (Parakeets) de Puebla before 6,253 fans at Estadio Eduardo Vasconcelos in Oaxaca City.

Fans of AAA ball in the US would be right at home in Estadio Eduardo Vasconcelos, except for the Field Turf. Beer (Corona and Victoria) costs $1.60, and they even have vendors selling Domino's Pizza. (I had a “hamburguesa”, which came with cheese and avocado; it was pretty good.) There's the usual video screen in center field, and the washrooms are clean.

The dimensions are 410' in center field, and 350' down the left and right field lines. Don't think for a minute, however, that this is a pitchers' ballpark. A minute is about how long it took for the first batter of the game, DH Serafin Rodriguez of Los Pericos, to hit one of the longest home runs I've ever seen over the left-field billboards. Oaxaca City is 5,102' above sea level, and very dry, so think Denver.

Read more: Guerreros de Oaxaca 4, Pericos de Puebla 2

Oklahoma City (19-4, 10-1 SAC) defeated Southern Nazarene 12-11, and swept three games against Mid-America Christian, 15-5, 8-1, and 11-0. 2B Brian Fisher went 3-for-5 with a home run, five RBI, and two runs scored against Southern Nazarene. CC/RF Dane Phillips hit a three-run home run in the first game against Mid-America Christian. Cody Crabaugh got the win in the second game, allowed two hits in five innings. Davis Henderson, Will Patrigo, and Allen Townsend combined for the shutout in the third game; Henderson recorded ten strikeouts. The Stars host Bethany March 12, Southern Nazarene March 13, and Briar Cliff March 17-18.

Concordia-Irvine (15-6, 7-1 GSAC) won two of three in a non-conference series against Cal State-San Marcos, losing 7-3 and winning 8-7 (10 innings) and 6-5. James Dykstra went the distance for the Cougars in the first game, allowed three runs on six hits, struck out seven. LF Kyle Konicek hit an RBI single for the winning run in the second game. CF John Doering laid down a bunt to score 2B Chris Limus for the winning run in the third game. The Eagles visit Point Loma Nazarene March 16, host Point Loma Nazarene March 17, and host Sioux Falls 18 and 21. The Eagles are tied with Azusa Pacific for the lead in the Golden State Athletic Conference.

Read more: Recap for March 13

Oklahoma City (15-4, 6-1 SAC) defeated Oklahoma Wesleyan 12-4, and swept Northwestern Oklahoma State, 10-5, 3-0, and 10-2. 2B Brian Fisher went 2-for-2 with a home run and three RBI against Oklahoma Wesleyan. C Chad Carman hit a solo home run for the winning run in the first game against Northwestern Oklahoma State. Rich Hawkins pitched the shutout in the second game, allowed four hits. C/RF Dane Phillips hit a three-run home run in the third game, and got another RBI on a ground out. The Stars visit Southern Nazarene March 6, host Mid-America Christian March 8 and 10, and visit Mid-America Christian March 9.

Concordia-Irvine (13-5, 7-1 GSAC) swept four games against Vanguard, 9-7 , 20-6, 10-9, and 14-4. Pinch-hitter Matt Taylor hit a two RBI double in the top of the ninth to win the first game. 1B Tony Harkey, Jr. hit two home runs and went 3-for-4 with three RBI and four runs scored in the second game. LF Kyle Konicek when 4-for-5 with a double and two RBI in the third game, and 3B Ryan DiMascio went 2-for-4 with a home run and two RBI in the fourth game. The Eagles visit non-conference Cal State-San Marcos March 9, and visit Cal State-San Marcos March 10. The Eagles lead the Golden State Athletic Conference; The Master's is second with a 6-2 record.

Lee (21-2, 9-0 SSAC) swept Milligan 10-1 and 13-0. SS Edmanuel Rivera and 1B Roberto Reyes hit home runs in the first game. Dustin Lawson, Kyle Briner, and Joe Fabre combined for a two-hit shutout in the second game. The Flames then swept three games against Truett McConnell, 8-1, 3-2, and 14-4. Kris Hall went seven innings in the first game, allowed one run on three hits, struck out 12. The Flames were out-hit 5-4 in the second game, but 2B Blake Barber singled in a run in the bottom of the seventh to win it. LF Mike Moore went 3-for-4 with a home run in the third game. The Flames visit Bryan March 7 and Tennessee Temple March 8, then host Loyola-New Orleans March 9-10. Barber is batting .507 for the Flames.

Read more: Recap for March 4