KANSAS CITY, Mo. - The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) is proud to announce the qualifiers for the 2009 NAIA Baseball National Championship Opening Round, which will be played May 12-15 at nine different sites. Each site will feature a five-team, double-elimination tournament. The winners of those nine Opening Round tournaments, in addition to host school Lewis-Clark State (Idaho), will meet at the final site of the 53rd Annual Avista-NAIA World Series from May 22-29 in Lewiston, Idaho.

This year's field of 46 teams is comprised of 14 at-larges and 32 automatic qualifiers. Brackets and seedings will be announced at 6 p.m. this evening (May 8).

Lewis-Clark State won its 16th title last year. Warrior catcher Brian Ward was named Tournament Most Valuable Player and is back this season to help Lewis-Clark defend their title.

Belhaven (Miss.), Bellevue (Neb.), Brescia (Ky.), British Columbia, Campbellsville (Ky.), Dakota Wesleyan (S.D), Embry-Riddle (Fla.), Houston-Victoria (Tex.), Indiana Tech, Jamestown (N.D.), Kansas Wesleyan, Lindenwood (Mo.), Lubbock Christian (Tex.), Malone (Ohio), McKendree (Ill.), Northwood (Tex.), Point Loma Nazarene (Calif.), Southern Polytechnic State (Ga.), Taylor (Ind.), Tennessee Wesleyan, Union (Tenn.) and William Penn (Iowa) all received an automatic bid after winning their respective conference/independent/unaffiliated tournaments.

Berry (Ga.), Nebraska Wesleyan, Oklahoma City, Purdue-North Central (Ind.), St. Xavier (Ill.), Texas Wesleyan, The Masters (Calif.), Union (Ky.) and William Jewell (Mo.) earned an automatic bid based on their conference qualification plan.

Auburn Montgomery (Ala.), Azusa Pacific (Calif.), Biola (Calif.), Cumberland (Tenn.), Fresno Pacific (Calif.), Lee (Tenn.), LSU-Shreveport (La.), Madonna (Mich.), Savannah College of Art & Design (Ga.), Southern Nazarene (Okla.), Spring Arbor (Mich.), Warner (Fla.), Wayland Baptist (Tex.), and William Carey (Miss.) all received an at-large bid.

Lewis-Clark State (Idaho) received an automatic bid as the host school.

Teams will compete at Harris Field. The field was named after a prominent Lewiston business man and baseball enthusiast of the 1930s, Loyd Harris. Harris was known as "Mr. Baseball", and it was through his efforts that Lewiston has become the baseball town that it is today. Although it has a seating capacity of only 5,000, Harris Field offers one of the most exciting and enjoyable ways to watch college baseball. The record attendance was set in 2008 when 5,530 fans came out to watch the NAIA World Series championship game. From the first pitch in February to the NAIA World Series games in late May, Harris Field and the easygoing small town atmosphere of the Lewis-Clark Valley give baseball fans a pleasant and memorable experience.

For more information on the NAIA World Series, click here.

Story from the NAIA Sports Information Office