HILLSBORO, Kan. – The 2024 Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference Baseball Championship bracket has been set. Tabor comes into the tournament as the No. 2 overall seed and the top seed in the bottom bracket with an overall record of 34-12 and a KCAC record of 28-8. 
 
The Bluejays wrapped up their regular season this past Thursday in Springfield, Mo., taking the KCAC series with Evangel, two games to one. The Bluejays rolled to a run-rule victory in game one, 20-0, before dropping game two, 3-0, and bouncing back to win the series in game three, 4-3. 
 
This year's KCAC Tournament format will be different than previous editions, with the top eight teams making the cut and being split into two four-team brackets. The tournament will be double elimination with the winner of both brackets competing for the KCAC Championship on Saturday, May 4^th at 5:30pm.
 
Kansas Wesleyan clinched the first automatic bid out of the KCAC to the NAIA Opening Round by winning the regular season conference title and the conference tournament champion will receive the conference's second automatic bid. If the Coyotes win the KCAC tournament, the tournament runner-up will clinch the second bid.
 
The Bluejays will match up with a familiar foe in the first round in Avila. The Bluejays hosted the Eagles in Hillsboro back at the beginning of April and swept the three-game series, winning game one 13-10, taking game two in extra innings, 4-3, and taking the final game by a score of 19-13. Tabor launched 12 homeruns across the series, with Juan Rosa-Gonzalez accounting for four of those homers.
 
The Eagles come into the tournament with an overall record of 22-28 and a 17-19 conference record. Most recently, Avila dropped their final conference series, hosting No. 20 Kansas Wesleyan this past weekend.
 
Tabor leads the KCAC with a .369 batting average, a .478 on-base percentage, and leads the conference in total hits with 554 on the season. The Bluejays also rank second in the KCAC in slugging percentage at .603. On the defensive side, the Bluejays lead the conference in fielding percentage at .977 and own the fourth lowest ERA at 6.28 on the season.
 
Tyler Mata Lloyd is tied for second in the NAIA in runs, with 73 on the season so far. Mata Lloyd leads the Bluejays with a .440 batting average, followed by Miguel Ramos III, who boasts a batting average of .435. Rosa Gonzalez leads the team in RBIs with 52, while Cody Moore is second on the team with 51 on the season. The Bluejays are led in homers by Marcelo Aguirre with 13 on the season, followed by Rosa Gonzalez with 10. Defensively, Payton Tinkler leads Tabor on the mound with a 4.33 ERA, making 11 starts in 13 appearances, boasting a record of 6-2 through 70.2 innings pitched. Cutter Smith comes in second with 11 starts in 13 appearances as well, and a 5.78 ERA through 67.0 innings, with a record of 8-2 and one save. 
 
The Eagles own a .291 batting average, a .423 on-base percentage, and a .447 slugging percentage. Gio Armas leads the Eagles with a .351 batting average, followed by Rickey Dober, with a batting average of .349. Zach Dillman leads the team in RBIs with 52, while Dober also ranks second on the team in RBIs with 51. Landon Vahle leads the Eagles with 12 total homeruns on the season. The Eagles are led on the mound by Alex Walton, who owns an ERA of 3.94 and a record of 7-0 through 64.0 innings and 11 starts, including two complete games.
 
First pitch will take place at 12:15pm and the game will be broadcast live on the KCAC Network and the tournament bracket is available here. For fans that plan on traveling to watch the tournament, all games will take place at Langrehr Park (also known as the Great Bend Sports Complex) in Great Bend, Kan.
 
Be sure to stay up to date with all information regarding Bluejay Athletics by following us on X at @gotaborbluejays, on Instagram and Facebook @taborbluejays, and on our official athletic website, taborbluejays.com.
 
Tabor College is a Christ-centered institution located in Hillsboro, Kansas. The Bluejays are members of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) and compete in the Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference (KCAC).