KANSAS CITY – For the second straight season, the No. 14-ranked Mid-America Christian University Evangels have earned a berth in the NAIA National Championship tournament in Kansas City, Mo.

MACU, the fourth seed in the Duer Bracket, will face the No. 20-ranked and fifth-seeded Park University (Mo.) Pirates Wednesday afternoon (Mar. 16) at 3 p.m. at the historic Municipal Auditorium in downtown Kansas City. 

This go-around, the Evangels are guided by first-year head coach Josh Gamblin, who led the Evangels to a 23-9 overall record and a 12-6 league mark, good for second in the Sooner Athletic Conference.

"We are so excited to be back in Kansas City for the National Tournament," Gamblin said.  "We wanted to continue to build off last year's success and getting back there was the biggest part of that." 

"Our group has bought in on all levels and has been extremely fun to coach.  We are excited for the opportunity to go up against the best NAIA programs in the country."

This will be the first meeting between the Evangels and Pirates since MACU became an NAIA school.  The winner will face the survivor of top-seeded Biola University (Calif.) and eighth-seeded Faulkner University (Ala.) Friday morning (Mar. 18) at 10:45 a.m.

The Pirates are 20-9 overall and play in the American Midwest Conference. 

The first 30 games of the tournament will be broadcast live on www.NAIANetwork.com and can be viewed with a paid subscription. The championship game is set for Mar. 22 at 7 p.m. in ESPN3.

Also, all games will be available via a live audio stream at http://mytown-media.com/ for free.  

For ticket information, click HERE or call the NAIA National Office at 816-595-8142.

Click HERE for the complete NAIA National Championship tournament bracket.