FAYETTE, Mo. – It's been a long week for the Central Methodist University baseball team. The Heart of America Athletic Conference Southern Division champions were nosed out by No. 1-seed Clarke University, 9-8, in 10 innings on Monday in the semifinals of the conference postseason tournament in Ozark, Mo. That meant the Crusaders and eventual conference tournament champion MidAmerica Nazarene University would receive the two automatic bids to the 2017 NAIA Baseball National Championship Opening Round.
The postseason is set to begin on Monday, with 45 teams taking part in nine Opening Round tournaments. They will be five-team fields at each site, with squads fighting for their respective titles in double-elimination format. The tournaments will continue throughout the week, finishing on May 18 at their respective sites.
The announcement of the entire field which has qualified for the Opening Round will be announced Thursday (today) at 3 p.m. CST on the NAIA Network. The video announcement will be posted at that time and you can find it by CLICKING HERE.
This year's Opening Round hosts include: Bellevue (Neb.), Faulkner (Ala.), Georgia Gwinnett, Kingsport (Tenn.) Convention and Visitors Bureau and the Appalachian Athletic Conference (AAC), Northwestern Ohio, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma Wesleyan, Tabor (Kan.), and William Carey (Miss.).
Central Methodist University was ranked No. 15 in the nation in the final regular season poll. The Eagles hope that the position in the rankings and their 42-15 season record are enough to
The Opening Round site selection process takes into account geography, facilities, student-athlete experience and host qualification. In the event that a selected bid is tied directly to an institution, that school is guaranteed at least an at-large host berth.
The nine Opening Round champions and World Series host Lewis-Clark State (Idaho) make up the field at the 2017 Avista-NAIA Baseball World Series. The World Series, which is taking place at Harris Field for the 18th-consecutive season and 26th time overall, is scheduled to run from May 26 – June 2.
When posted later today, the complete Opening Round schedule can be found by CLICKING HERE.
2017 NAIA BASEBALL NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP OPENING ROUND HOST SITES
| Host | Facility | Host City | Event Title |
| Bellevue (Neb.) | Don Roddy Field | Bellevue, Neb. | Bellevue Bracket |
| Faulkner (Ala.) | Harrison Field | Montgomery, Ala. | Montgomery Bracket |
| Georgia Gwinnett | Grizzly Baseball Field | Lawrenceville, Ga. | Lawrenceville Bracket |
| Kingsport CVB/Appalachian Athletic Conference | Hunter Wright Stadium | Kingsport, Tenn. | Kingsport Bracket |
| Northwestern Ohio | St. Rita's Sports Complex | Lima, Ohio | Lima Bracket |
| Oklahoma City | Jim Wade Stadium | Oklahoma City, Okla. | Oklahoma City Bracket |
| Oklahoma Wesleyan | Bill Doenges Memorial Stadium | Bartlesville, Okla. | Bartlesville Bracket |
| Tabor (Kan.) | Hobart-Detter Field/Rice Field | Hutchinson, Kan. | Hutchinson Bracket |
| William Carey (Miss.) | Milton Wheeler Field | Hattiesburg, Miss. | Hattiesburg Bracket |
CMU Baseball Contact: John Krueger
Phone: 936-332-9332 | jkrueger@centralmethodist.edu
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Website: www.CMUEagles.com
