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S.D. – For the second straight year, Bellevue (Neb.) is the unanimous favorite capture to the 2017 North Star Athletic Association (NSAA) Baseball conference title, the conference coaches’ preseason poll was announced Monday.

The Bruins collected all ten (10) first-place votes with 100 points in the preseason poll, finished the 2016 season with an overall record of 54-12 and 20-3 record in the North Star conference play.  BU won both the NSAA conference regular-season and postseason tournament titles last season.

Bellevue is ranked No. 3 in the 2017 NAIA Baseball Coaches’ Preseason Top 25 nation poll, which was announced by the NAIA national office last November.

Jamestown (N.D.) – ranked No. 16 in the national preseason poll – was picked to finish second in the North Star conference, registering a total of 87 points.  The Jimmies are currently 6-1 record from the fall baseball games.  Mayville state (N.D.), who is also 6-1 overall record, was predicted to finish third with 83 points.

BU, UJ and MSU qualified for the NAIA Baseball National Tournament Opening Round last season.  The Bruins won the Grand Rapids (Mich.) bracket of the national tournament, and finished third in the Avista-NAIA World Series last season in Lewiston, Idaho.

Dickinson State (N.D.) – currently 3-5 overall record – recorded 66 points to finish fourth in the coaches’ preseason poll.  Waldorf (Iowa) edged Dakota State (S.D.) 49-47 for fifth-place.

Valley City State (N.D.) (1-8 overall record) was predicted to finish seventh with 42 points.  Viterbo (Wis.) was picked to finish eighth with 39 points, followed by Presentation (S.D.) ninth with 27 points and Winnipeg (Manitoba) tenth with 10 points.  PC is 1-3 overall record, while WU is 0-4 overall record from their games last fall.

The North Star Athletic Association baseball season opens up on March 25-26 with a four-game series for the following:  Jamestown at Waldorf, Mayville State at Valley City State, Winnipeg at Bellevue, Dickinson State at Presentation and Dakota State at Viterbo.

There will be two automatic bids from the North Star Athletic Association for the NAIA Baseball National Tournament Opening Round, which is held on May 16-19.  The regular-season conference winner and the postseason tournament winner will earn a trip to the national tournament, at nine different sites announced by the NAIA national office later this spring.

The NSAA Baseball Conference Postseason Tournament will take place at two host institutions – the University of Jamestown and Valley City State.  The tournament kicks off on May 5 and runs through May 9.  The postseason tournament schedule and pairings will be announced after the conclusion of the NSAA conference regulars-season in early May.

The NAIA Baseball World Series is slated to be played in Lewiston, Idaho from May 26 through June 2.

Below is the complete 2017 NSAA Baseball Coaches’ Preseason Poll:

  

2017 North Star Athletic Association Baseball Preseason Poll
Rank	School	Points
1	Bellevue (Neb.) (10)	100
2	Jamestown (N.D.)	87
3	Mayville State (N.D.)	83
4	Dickinson State (N.D.)	66
5	Waldorf (Iowa)	49
6	Dakota State (S.D.)	47
7	Valley City State (N.D.)	42
8	Viterbo (Wis.)	39
9	Presentation (S.D.)	27
10	Winnipeg (Manitoba)	10
*First-place votes in parenthesis