Game Information
Score: Keiser 9, IU Southeast 6
Records: No. 5 Keiser (42-19), No. 21 IU Southeast (48-15)
Location: Kingsport, Tenn.
Venue: Hunter Wright Stadium
Duration of Game: 2:45
Weather: championship caliber weather
                                                         

Keiser Highlights

• No. 5 ranked Keiser is bound for the 2017 Avista-NAIA Baseball World Series in Lewiston, Idaho for the first time in program history as the Seahawks upended No. 21 IU Southeast by the final score of 9-6.
• Keiser bested the Grenadiers for the second time in three days to reach the college world series, winning three out of four games to claim the Kingsport Regional.
• This will be head coach Jeremy Kennedy's second time making the NAIA World Series as he led Northwood Texas to the promised land in 2013.
• Tyler Hitt also reached a career milestone with his 100^th career stolen base in the top of the sixth inning.
• Keivan Berges finished the game with a team-high three hits, plating one run in the process.
• Berges also got the work done on the rubber, pitching seven innings of work and allowing two runs on eight hits for his fifth win of the season.
• Zack Saldivar was the final Seahawk with multiple hits, finishing the game going 2-5 with one run scored.
• Brad Myott and Carlos Lopez finished the game with a team-high two RBIs apiece to lead the Seahawks in scoring.

 
Turning Point
Reyni Olivero's solo shot in the top of the fifth inning proved to be the turning point for the Seahawks. After Keiser had yielded two runs to knot the game at two apiece, Olivero unloaded for his first homerun of the season, sending the ball over the right field fence for the 3-2 advantage. The Seahawks would not relinquish the lead from that point on.
 

How it Happened

• The Seahawks wasted no time in scoring, plating two runs on two hits in the top of the first inning for the early 2-0 advantage.
• The first run came off the bat of Berges with an RBI double to left field, followed by Myott's RBI groundout to first, plating Mundo from third.
• IU Southeast cut the Keiser lead in half in the bottom of the second as Nicholas Lugo stole third and then scored following a throwing error by Myott.
• Cody Maloon knotted the game at two apiece for the Grenadiers with an RBI single up the middle to plate Lugo from second in the bottom of the fourth inning.
• The Seahawks would not trail in the contest as Olivero belted the go-ahead dinger in the top of the fifth inning, sending a 1-0 pitch over the right field fence for his first long ball of the season.
• IU Southeast had a chance to tie the game in the bottom of the seventh with a runner on third and one away until Berges buckled down and struck out Rodriguez before inducing an inning-ending groundout off the bat of Barnes.
• The Seahawks put the game away in the top of the eighth inning, scoring five runs on five hits to stretch their lead to 8-2.
• The first run of the eighth inning came off the bat of Myott with an RBI single to plate Hitt from third for the 4-2 lead.
• After a bases-loaded wild pitch scored Tom Prospero, Lopez laced a two-RBI single to center field to bring home Jack Curtis and Carlos Pena for the 7-2 advantage with one out.
• The final run of the inning came from Miguel Casanueva as the Florida native stole home to stretch the Keiser lead to 8-2.
• The Seahawks yielded two runs in the bottom of the eighth inning, cutting their lead down to four as Benefield and Flanary recorded RBI base hits.
• Keiser's final run of the game came in the top of the ninth inning as Mundo scored following a throwing error by the shortstop as the Grenadiers were trying to turn the double play on Myott.
• IU Southeast would not go away in the bottom of the ninth inning following Leenknecht's two-RBI single through the left side of the infield, cutting Keiser's lead to 9-6 with one out.
• After a single by Ludo put runners on first and second with one away, Jeremy Graf settled in and recorded a ground out and pop fly to end the game, punching Keiser's ticket to the Gem State.

 
Kennedy's Take
"I couldn't be prouder of the guys today," stated Kennedy. "They showed a lot of heart through this tournament. Coming back today after what happened last night is really special. We had so many guys step up this week and now we get to go chase our first National Championship. So many people have a hand in this thing. I'm just really grateful to have the opportunity to be here at Keiser, working for great people and leading a great group of men."

Up Next
Keiser will await its seed as the NAIA will reseed the tournament field for the 2017 NAIA World Series. The NAIA World Series will run from May 26-June 2.