MOBILE, Ala. - The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) officially announced the 46-team field and pairings for the 2023 NAIA Baseball National Championship Opening Round on Thursday afternoon, May 11, with the University of Mobile Baseball program scheduled to travel to Williamsburg, Ky. to open the national tournament this year. The 14th annual event takes place May 15-18 at 10 host sites nationwide. Six of the sites will feature five-team, double-elimination tournaments, while the final four brackets will sport only four squads each.
The winners of all 10 Opening Round sites will head to Lewiston, Id. for the 66th Annual Avista NAIA Baseball World Series, running from May 26 – June 2. For more information on the World Series, click HERE.
Mobile earned an automatic bid this season following a historic run in the 2023 SSAC Baseball Championship Tournament where the Rams earned their first SSAC title last week. With a 35-13 overall record, Mobile was awarded the No. 2 seed of the Williamsburg Bracket, joining the top-seeded host of the University of the Cumberlands (Ky.), No. 3 seed of Columbia College (Mo.), No. 4 seed of Reinhardt University (Ga.) in the opening round. Overall, the Rams are making their third appearance in the NAIA Baseball Opening Round, sporting a 1-4 record with no opening round titles. Mobile's last appearance in the NAIA Baseball National Tournament came during the 2019 season.
Mobile is scheduled to begin opening round play against Columbia College on Monday, May 15 at 2:30 p.m. CT. Winner of that game will face the winner of the Cumberlands v. Reinhardt matchup the next day. For a full look at the opening round bracket schedules, as well as broadcast and live stats links, click HERE.
More from the NAIA
The field consists of 31 automatic qualifiers – given to conference regular-season champions, regular-season runners-up, tournament champions or tournament runners-up. Additionally there were 15 at-large teams. Conferences with 10-or-more members receive two automatic qualifiers, while leagues with less than 10 get one. At-large teams were determined by the NAIA Baseball National Selection Committee (NSC). The NSC consists of one representative from each geographic area, a representative from the National Administrative Council, a member of the NAIA-Baseball Coaches Association Executive Committee and three at-large members. The committee evaluated teams throughout the year on various criteria.
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About the University of Mobile
The University of Mobile is a Christ-centered liberal arts and sciences institution with a vision of higher education for a higher purpose, founded to honor God by equipping students for their future professions through rigorous academic preparation and spiritual transformation. Core values are: Christ-Centered, Academically-Focused, Student-Devoted and Distinctively-Driven. The university offers on-campus and online bachelor's, master's and doctoral degrees in over 75 academic programs. Founded in 1961, the University of Mobile is affiliated with the Alabama Baptist State Convention and is located 10 miles north of Mobile, Alabama on a campus of over 880 acres.
For information about the University of Mobile, areas of study, admissions and more, visit umobile.edu, connect with UM on social media @univofmobile, or call Enrollment Services at 1.800.WIN.RAMS or 251.442.2222.
