Bellevue, Neb. - The Central Methodist baseball program has earned the No. 2 seed in the Belleuve Bracket of the 2022 NAIA Baseball National Championship Opening Round.
The opening round is set to take place May 16-19 in Bellevue, Neb. Six of the opening round sites around the country will feature a five-team, double-elimination tournament. The final four brackets will sport only four squads.
The winners of all 10 opening round sites will head to Lewis-Clark State (Idaho) for the 65th annual Avista NAIA Baseball World Series in Lewiston, Idaho, May 27 – June 3.
Joining CMU in the Bellevue Bracket is No. 1 Bellevue (Neb.), No. 3 Tabor (Kan.), No. 4 Concordia (Neb.), and No. 5 Judson (Ill.).
CMU enters the dance with an overall record of 42-13 and a 23-9 mark in the Heart of America Athletic Conference. Central earned an automatic berth into the tournament after clinching a spot in the Heart Tournament Championship. The Eagles won their second consecutive conference tournament title this past week over MidAmerica Nazarene, and finish at No. 11 in the final NAIA Baseball Coaches Top 25 poll.
Host school Bellevue is the top-seeded team in the Bellevue Bracket, qualifying by winning the North Star Athletic Association Tournament. Bellevue enters the tournament with a 45-10 overall record, going 25-2 in NSAA play. The Bruins are ranked No. 6 in the final NAIA Coaches' Poll.
Tabor, receiving votes in the final NAIA Coaches' Poll, earned an at-large bid into the Opening Round. The Bluejays posted a 37-17-1 overall record including a 22-11 mark in KCAC play. Tabor placed third in the conference during the regular-season and reached the KCAC Tournament Championship Game.
Concordia is also receiving votes in the final NAIA Coaches' Poll. The Bulldogs won the GPAC Tournament Championship to secure their bid, posting a 36-15-1 overall record (20-8 GPAC). Concordia was the second seed in the conference tournament, but won five-straight elimination games to take home the tournament crown.
Judson secured its spot by reaching the championship game of the Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference. After splitting the first two games of the conference tournament, the Eagles ran off three-straight elimination game victories to reach the final. Judson will serve as the No. 5 seed.
CMU will begin championship play against Tabor Monday, May 16 at 2:30 p.m.
Fans can watch all games of the Bellevue Bracket bracket, free of charge, here.
Tickets for the Opening Round are as follows; Adults: $10.00 - Day Pass, Adults: $25.00 - Tournament Pass, 12 and under - Free.
To view the full list of qualifiers for this year's field, please click here. Fans may also watch the selection show here.
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