BISMARCK, N.D. -- Following the program's 15th trip to the Avista NAIA World Series in 2022, the Bellevue University baseball team is the unanimous selection to win the 2023 North Star Athletic Association baseball championship.
A pair of returning All-Americans in shortstop Alec Ackerman and center fielder Kanta Kobayashi has the Bruins primed to repeat their recent league success. Both Ackerman and Kobayashi were recently recognized on the 17-player NAIA Preseason All-America Team.
Since joining the North Star prior to the 2015-16 school year, BU has won five of six regular-season conference titles, four of six tournament crowns, and winning both on three occasions (2016, 2019, 2022), with each of the double dips coinciding with their three most recent trips to the Avista NAIA World Series.
Bellevue, ranked fifth nationally in November's Preseason NAIA Coaches' Top 25, took all eight first place votes and totaled 64 points in the poll, ahead of preseason No. 2 Dakota State University.
The Trojans, whom Bellevue defeated 1-0 in last year's NSAA Title Game, collected 55 points to finish second in the poll. Dickinson State (47), Waldorf (36), Mayville State (32), and Valley City State (30) occupied spots 3-6 while Viterbo (16) and Presentation (8) rounded out the poll.
This year's NSAA Baseball Tournament will be hosted by Dickinson State from May 5-8 with the winner securing the North Star's automatic bid to the 2023 NAIA National Tournament Opening Round.
Bellevue is coming off a 2022 season in which they posted a 49-13 overall mark, going 25-2 in conference play, and sweeping both the NSAA Regular-Season and Tournament titles. BU took the league's lone automatic bid in making their 24th National Tournament Appearance, hosted their fourth Opening Round at Don Roddy Field, and reached the Avista NAIA World Series for the third time in the past six full seasons.
