Junior guard BreAnna Lewis is leading the offense through the early portion of the season, averaging a team-high 17.0 points per game. The Greenville, Miss. native ranks third in the MIAA in scoring average, and ranks third in the league with 18 three-pointers made, averaging 3.0 treys each contest. She also is tied for sixth in the league with a .500 shooting percentage from beyond the arc.

Miss Basketball

Freshman Shelby Winkelmann has been another key addition to the 2012-13 squad. The guard is averaging 15.7 points per game, second-most on the team and seventh in the MIAA. Of the five Jennies' starters, Winkelmann has the highest shooting percentage, at 55.1%. Defensively, Winkelmann is averaging 1.8 steals per contest, ranking 14th in the league.

Senior Leader

Senior forward Nicole Caddell nearly earned her third double-double in as many games in the loss at Fort Hays State. Caddell recorded 11 points and a team-high eight rebounds against the Lady Tigers.

While she only ranks 20th in the MIAA in scoring (11.3 ppg), Caddell is among the league leaders in other key categories. The Tuscaloosa, Ala. native leads the conference in rebounding, averaging 10.7 boards per game. She is fourth in the MIAA in steals per game, with 2.7, and fifth in blocks, averaging 1.8 per night.

Key Reserves

Two juniors have been instrumental in their roles off the bench this season, in Symone Murray and Quinnecia Twine. Murray is averaging 8.7 points per game and 3.2 rebounds per game from the forward position. After scoring under ten points in the last two games, Murray's production picked back up, recording a team-high 13 points at Fort Hays, giving the junior four games with double-figure scoring.

Twine has similar numbers of the year, with an average of 7.7 points and 1.3 rebounds per game, while seeing an average of 15.0 minutes on the floor. Twine has been able to get to the free throw line with ease this year, and is third on the team in free throw attempts (18), where she is shooting at a 66.7% clip. Against the Lady Tigers, Twine picked up eight points off 3-of-8 shooting, including a 2-of-5 performance from beyond the arc.

Running the Point

After missing all of last season due to injury, senior Erin Redmond has thrived in the starting point guard role in 2012-13. The senior is averaging 4.5 points per game while dealing out 1.8 assists per game. Redmond is shooting 45.8% from the field going 11-of-24 this season.

Ready to Contribute

Junior Kiersten Orton has earned a starting spot in all five games this season, and is averaging 2.8 points and 4.0 rebounds per game. The forward has also collected six blocks on the season, which ranks 14th in the MIAA.

Bench Notes

Sophomore Brielle Wattley is averaging over twenty minutes per game on the floor, leading all players off the bench ... The guard is averaging 4.3 points per game and is tied for the team lead with 15 assists ... Her 1.7 assist-to-turnover ratio ranks 10th in the MIAA ... Redshirt freshman Danielle Barry has gained valuable experience on the court this season, and is averaging 2.3 points and 3.3 rebounds per game ... Sophomore Breonna Embray has appeared in all six games this season, averaging 11.0 minutes per game ... Embray has scored ten points on the season, and dealt out a total of five assists ... She currently leads the team with an 85.7% (6-7) free throw percentage.

Offensive Output

The Jennies have one of the highest-powered offenses in the league so far this season, averaging 77.5 points per game with a .459 shooting percentage; both averages rank second in the MIAA this season. With its' 5-1 mark this season, UCM has an outscored opponents by an average of 12.2 points, giving the Jens the sixth-highest scoring margin in the MIAA. From beyond the arc, the Jens are shooting at a 41.0% clip, ranking just behind Truman for the league lead.

Milestone Victory

With the 84-77 win at Lewis, Jennies head coach Dave Slifer picked up his 150th victory at UCM. Slifer is six victories away from moving into a tie for third place on the Jennies all-time wins list, with Mildred Barnes (1971-80). Slifer has a 150-92 record on the UCM sideline, and a 533-191 record during his 24-year coaching career. He currently ranks seventh among active coaches at the Division II level in total wins, and is one of just seven active coaches to reach the 500 wins mark.

In the Classroom

As much success as the Jennies saw on the court in 2011-12, they achieved just as much in the classroom. Nine players on last year's roster earned the MIAA Academic Honor Roll award, for earning at least a 3.0 cumulative GPA. Two players from a year ago, Alyssa Rhodes and Taylor Hanson, were honored with the MIAA Scholar-Athlete award, as the two seniors were recognized for earning All-MIAA Team honors while maintaining a 3.5 GPA or higher.

Junior forward Kiersten Orton was one of just 18 athletes across all sports at Central Missouri to earn the MIAA Academic Excellence Award. Orton has recorded a perfect 4.0 GPA during her time at UCM, while studying Accounting.

MIAA Preseason Polls

After a fourth place regular season finish a year ago, the Jennies debuted at No. 6 in the MIAA Preseason Coaches and Media Polls. The Jens finished behind Fort Hays State in both polls, after finishing ahed of the Tigers in the MIAA standings in 2011-12, and knocking Fort Hays State out of the MIAA Tournament in the first round. UCM also tallied fewer votes than MIAA newcomers Northeastern State (Okla.); the Riverhawks earned an NCAA Tournament at-large bid after competing as an independent last year, and reached the second round before falling to the eventual regional champs, Pittsburg State.

Washburn, who won the regular season and tournament titles last year, were picked to repeat by both the coaches and the media. Pittsburg State, who reached the first round of the NCAA Elite Eight, were picked second in both polls. Emporia State and Northeastern State placed third and fourth, while Fort Hays State rounds out the top five in both polls.

UCM in the Polls

Central Missouri cracked the top 25 for the first time this week, debuting in the WBCA USA TODAY Sports Division II Top 25 Poll. The Jennies are one of five MIAA teams receiving a national rank this week; Washburn is the highest-ranked conference opponent, moving up four spots to No. 8. Pittsburg State fell eight spots after suffering their first loss, down to No. 11, while two of UCM's opponents this week, Fort Hays State (No. 17) and Emporia State (No. 21) appear in the poll.

UCM Program History

The UCM Jennies are 830-350 (.703) after 41 seasons, and 627-261 (.706) in the 30 seasons since joining NCAA Division II ... the Jennies have won 9 MIAA regular season championships, 7 MIAA Tournament titles, 6 NCAA regional titles, and the 1984 NCAA Division II National Championship.

Series History with Emporia State

The Lady Hornets are one of just two MIAA programs that hold a winning record against the Jennies, as Emporia leads the all-time series 36-30 ... The Jens are 18-11 against ESU at home, and won the last meeting, 63-62, on Feb. 1 in the Multipurpose Building ... Emporia State holds a 11-4 mark in the series since 2007.

Opponent Preview

The 21st-ranked Lady Hornets will come into the Multi after being upset on the road Wednesday night, falling 63-51 at Northeastern State ... Emporia State is led by junior guard Laura Patrick, who is averaging 15.6 points per game, good for seventh in the MIAA ... The Lady Hornest boast one of the better defenses in the league this season, holding opponents to a .341 shooting percentage, the third-lowest in the MIAA.

A Win for the Jennies Would...

... improve the Jennies record to 6-1 this season ... be the first MIAA victory of the year, moving to 1-1 ... extend the team's home winning streak to five straight games ... be the second straight win over Emporia State ... be the first win over a ranked opponent since the road win at Washburn last season (Feb. 8).

A Loss for the Jennies Would...

... drop the Jennies record to 5-2 on the year ... drop their record to 0-2 against the MIAA this season ... be the first 0-2 start to the conference season since 2007-08 ... be the fifth loss to the Lady Hornets in the last six meetings ... be the 100th all-time loss in the Multipurpose Building.

Jennies Basketball in the Multi

The Jens are 447-99 all-time in the Multipurpose Building, and 80-29 during the Slifer era ... UCM has won at least nine home games every year since 2004-05 ... the Jennies have gone undefeated at home three times: 1982-83 (15-0, finished 3rd in the nation), 1985-86 (14-0, regional champions), and 1988-89 (15-0, finished 4th in the nation) ... from 1988 to 1990, the Jennies won a school-record 34 consecutive games at the Multi.

Jennies on the Air

Central Missouri women's basketball can be caught throughout the season on 98.5 “The BAR,” 1450 KOKO, and warrensburgradio.com as Greg Hassler provides play-by-play alongside Shawn Jones.

Fans can catch highlights each week on Central Missouri Sportspage, Thursday nights at 7 p.m., and Saturdays at 5 p.m. on KMOS-TV. Shawn Jones will sit down with Coach Slifer throughout the season to discuss the latest game, as various Jennies will be featured throughout the year.

Jennies fans can also tune in to 98.5 “The Bar” and 1450 KOKO each Tuesday morning at 9:30 a.m. for Central Missouri Sports Talk, with Greg Hassler and Bill Turnage. The pair will talk UCM athletics, as well as other hot topics in the sports world. Jennies coaches and players will drop in throughout the season as well.