The 1978 NAIA World Series was the 22nd annual

tournament A tournament is a competition involving at least three competitors, all participating in a sport or game. More specifically, the term may be used in either of two overlapping senses: # One or more competitions held at a single venue and concentr ...

hosted by the

National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) established in 1940, is a college athletics association for colleges and universities in North America. Most colleges and universities in the NAIA offer athletic scholarships to its stu ...

to determine the national champion of

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding tea ...

among its member colleges and universities in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

and

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

. After thirteen seasons (1962–1969, 1974–1978), this was the last tournament staged at

Phil Welch Stadium Phil Welch Stadium is a baseball stadium in St Joseph, Missouri. It originally opened in 1939 as the home of the minor league St. Joseph Saints. It has a seating capacity of 3,600 and is located at 2600 SW Parkway in St. Joseph. History Phil W ...

St. Joseph, Missouri St. Joseph is a city in and the county seat of Buchanan County, Missouri. Small parts of St. Joseph extend into Andrew County. Located on the Missouri River, it is the principal city of the St. Joseph Metropolitan Statistical Area, which includ ...

Emporia State Emporia State University (Emporia State or ESU) is a public university in Emporia, Kansas, United States. Established in March 1863 as the Kansas State Normal School, Emporia State is the third-oldest public university in the state of Kansas. E ...

(40-20-2), emerging from the consolation bracket, defeated Missouri Southern State (24–16) in a single-game championship series, 8–6, to win the Hornets' first NAIA World Series. Emporia State pitcher Kevin Mendon was named tournament MVP.

Bracket

References

{{NAIA World Series

NAIA World Series The NAIA World Series (officially branded as the Avista NAIA World Series for sponsorship purposes from 2013) is a double-elimination tournament, held since 1957, to determine the baseball champion of the National Association of Intercollegiate At ...

NAIA World Series

Baseball competitions in Missouri College sports tournaments in Missouri St. Joseph, Missouri

Bracket

See also

References