Thursday, May 1 | 6 p.m. 
Overland Park, Kan. | Blue Valley Recreation Complex 
Live Stats

MIAA Tournament Page
UCM Game Notes  |    MIAA Tournament Bracket
Twitter Updates: @UCMMULES
Join the conversation: #teamUCM
 

Scene Setter...
The fifth-seeded Jennies (27-21, 14-12 MIAA) make their 31st MIAA Tournament appearance in the past 33 years on Thursday, May 1 in Overland Park, Kan. The Jennies will face off with fourth-seeded Fort Hays State, whom they lost to twice on the road during the regular season.      
       The team's most recent MIAA Tournament appearance resulted in a quarterfinals loss to Missouri Western, 8-5 during the 2012 season. 
       Overall, UCM is 66-49 in MIAA Tournament games and last won the tournament in 1997. They are 2-2 against Fort Hays State all-time in postseason play and have lost the past two meetings, both coming in 2010. 
       The Jennies' offense set a pair of new benchmarks this year, scoring 310 runs - the most since the 1994 season when they plated 292 runners. The starting lineup boasted five hitters batting .300 or better (at least 100 at-bats), helping UCM to a .320 team average - the first time since 2010 that the Jennies hit .300 as a team. 
       Junior Jakki Prater needs three RBI to set the program's single-season record, which would pass Beth Savage's 60 in 1995. She also needs two pitching victories to move into a 10th place tie for most victories in a season in Jennies history. Senior Braylyn Bivens is six stolen bases shy of becoming the program's all-time leader. 
        Should UCM defeat Fort Hays State, they will play the winner of the Emporia State-Northeastern State game at 8 p.m. on Thursday. If they were to lose, they would match up with the loser of the Emporia State-Northeastern State game at the same start time. 

Scouting the Opponent:
Fort Hays State Tigers
Overall Record entering the weekend: 28-18, 17-9 MIAA
Key hitters: Courtney Dobson (.350, HR, 26 RBI, 26 runs, 7 2B's, 2 SB's in 143 at-bats), Bianca Adame (.348, 16 RBI, 31 runs, three 2B's, five 3B's, 27 SB's in 161 at-bats), Danie Brinkmann (.305, three HR's, 30 RBI, 10 2B's, SB, 10 runs in 131 at-bats).
Key pitcher(s): Kelsey Kimminau (2.97 ERA, 10-7 record, 108.1 IP, 71 K's, eight CG's, two shutouts), Paxton Duran (3.01 ERA), 16-8 record, 139.1 IP, 127 K's, 13 CG's, four shutouts). 
Team stats: Batting average - .294, Opponents - .273
Head Coach: Erin Kinberger (third season, 106-49 record)

Series History
Fort Hays State: The Jennies lead the all-time series, 13-12. The Jennies lost both regular season meetings to the Tigers this season in Hays on March 9, 11-3, 8-6. Overall, Fort Hays State has won nine of the last 12 meetings. 

Non-Conference Games
    Central Missouri has been 795-582 in non-conference games since 1972, the beginning of softball at UCM. In the 'NCAA/MIAA Era' the Jennies have compiled a 651-459 non-conference mark. Anderson has a 123-111 record in non-conference contests. The Jennies were 13-9 in non-conference games during the 2014 regular season.  

Conference Games
    Central Missouri has posted a 251-148 MIAA mark since the inception of the conference in 1983. Under Anderson the Jennies are 90-56 in conference action. The Jennies finished the regular season with a 14-12 record in conference action.

Home Field Advantage
    Since the 1977 season, Central Missouri is 361-162 at home. Under Anderson, the Jennies are 74-32 at home. UCM has gone undefeated in the 2007 (8-0), 1991 (13-0), 1989 (8-0), and 1979 (6-0). UCM finished 10-6 in home games this season. 

On the Road
    Since 1977, UCM has posted a 229-211 mark on the road and a 431-321 record at neutral sites. Under Anderson the Jennies have gone 71-68 on the road and 84-80 at neutral sites. This season, the Jennies are 10-9 in road games and 7-6 in neutral site games. 

Inside the Numbers
    The Jennies' 27 regular season wins are the most since 2011, when that group won 29 games. 
    UCM went 10-9 away from the South Recreation Complex this season - the third time in the past four years the program won that many road games. It was also UCM's first winning record on the road since 2011 when they finished 10-9. 
    Should the Jennies win at least three MIAA Tournament games, it would mark the first time since 2009 that the team won at least 30 games and the fourth time under Coach Anderson. 
    Prater needs four home runs to set the new MIAA individual record of 24, which would eclipse the 23 homers hit by Emporia State's Megan Davison back in 2006. 
    In the first inning this season, UCM has outscored its opponents, 49-30. Prater (15) and Katie Shockley (11) have accounted for 26 of the Jennies' 27 wins (Jessica Wilkes has the other win). Prater entered the season with 12 career victories, while Shockley began the campaign with eight career wins. 
    Central Missouri has hit 87 doubles after recording just 53 a season ago. The Jennies' offense pounded out 49 home runs and five triples.
    During the regular season, the Jennies were 15-0 when leading after six innings. 

Jennies in the MIAA Statistics (Through April 29)
• In 48 regular season games, the Jennies finished third in the MIAA in batting with a .320 average. Central Oklahoma finished first with a team average of .344.
• UCM is one of six schools with a team ERA under 4.00. The Jennies' pitching staff boasts the fifth-lowest ERA in the conference at 3.43.
• The Jennies finished the regular season second in doubles (87), third in homeruns (49), third in on-base percentage (.385) and fourth in runs scored (310).

Jennies Picked Seventh in MIAA Preseason Coaches Poll
The Jennies softball team is predicted to finish seventh in the 2014 MIAA preseason poll as picked by the league coaches. The Jennies received 95 total points in the poll, which was released Friday, January 31.
    Central MIssouri finished the 2013 season with a 24-22 record, 14-14 in MIAA competition. The Jennies return 10 players, headlined by 2013 second-team All-MIAA infielder Braylyn Bivens. 
    Central Oklahoma was a unanimous selection to repeat as regular season MIAA champions, receiving all 13 possible first-place votes. The Bronchos totaled 169 points in the preseason poll. Missouri Western received the other first-place vote, totaling 156 points to finish second. Fort Hays State (138 points), Emporia State (130) and Northeastern State (115) round out the top five. 

A Tradition of Excellence in the Athletic Arena
• At the conclusion of the fall 2013 athletic season, Central Missouri has won a combined 193 MIAA regular-season conference championships in 14 league sports to lead all schools.
• During the 2012-13 school year UCM captured three MIAA regular season and one tournament championship.
• Since 1983, the tenure of Athletic Director Jerry Hughes, UCM has won or shared 139 MIAA championships, more than any other league school.
• Central Missouri has won five national championships since 1980 (men's and women's basketball in 1984, baseball in 1994 and 2003, and women's bowling in 2003) and seven national championships overall.

A Tradition of Excellence in the Classroom
• The 550 Central Missouri student-athletes received 375 Academic Awards from the MIAA office for the 2012-13 academic year.
• 305 UCM student-athletes were named to the MIAA Academic Honor Roll with a 3.0 GPA or higher.
• 37 UCM student-athletes were named MIAA Scholar Athletes with at least a 3.5 GPA and having earned all-MIAA honors in their respective sport.
• 33 UCM student-athletes were named MIAA Academic Excellence Award winners with a 4.0 GPA.
• UCM had eight student-athletes earn Academic All-America honors in their respective sports, including Brent Vogel being named the Capital One/CoSIDA Academic All-American of the Year for Men's Track & Field.