Lions earn NAIA berth

The Vanguard University baseball team received an at-large berth into the NAIA Tournament and will begin play in a five-team group at Cal Baptist on Tuesday.

The Lions (32-18) will play Huntington University of Indiana (31-20) in the opening game of a double-elimination group tournament at 9 a.m. If victorious, Vanguard faces the top-seeded team in the group, Cal Baptist, in the third game of the day at 3 p.m.

If Vanguard loses to Huntington, it would play a loser’s bracket game Wednesday at 9 a.m.

Huntington, the Mid-Central College Conference Tournament champion, is making its first NAIA Tournament appearance.

Vanguard, which has lost seven of its last eight, is making its second NAIA Tournament appearance.

The group tournament continues through Friday with the nine group winners joining host Lewis-Clark State at the NAIA World Series, May 28 through June 4, in Lewiston, Idaho.

Cal Baptist (45-13), the regular season and postseason tournament champion in the Golden State Athletic Conference, is ranked No. 3 in the NAIA.

No. 10-ranked Madonna University of Michigan (46-9) is also in Vanguard’s group, as is No. 15-ranked College of Idaho (37-14).