No. 12 Mules await winner of Central Oklahoma and Washburn for spot in title game

First Pitch
• The 12th-ranked Central Missouri Mules will play the winner of Central Oklahoma and Washburn in the bracket two title game on Saturday at 12:30 p.m. 
• UCO and WU play at 9 a.m. with the winner needing to beat the Mules twice to make it to the MIAA Tournament Championship Game on Sunday.
• The 2016 season marks the 23rd straight year that UCM has won at least 30 games.
• The Mules won their 25th MIAA Regular Season Championship this year after being picked to finish third in the MIAA's Preseason Coaches' poll.

Mules Baseball on the air
• All of UCM's postseason games can be heard live on 1450 KOKO, 98.5 The Bar and warrensburgradio.com.
• Bob Jackson and Ricky Rivera will be on the call with the Lotspeich Automotive Dugout Show beginning 25 minutes prior to first pitch.

The Series
• The Mules lead the all-time series with Central Oklahoma 25-16, including a 5-3 mark under Kyle Crookes with the teams going 2-2 this year.
• UCO beat UCM 5-1 in a non-con game back on Feb. 13 before the Mules won two of three in Edmond. Scores in the MIAA set were 4-2 and 6-2 in favor of UCM with UCO winning the middle game 15-7.
• The Mules lead the series with Washburn 79-20, including a 6-2 mark under Crookes.
• UCM swept the Ichabods in a three-game set in Topeka last weekend by scores of 3-2 (10 inn.), 8-4 and 10-3.

Central Oklahoma
• Central Oklahoma enters Saturday action at 30-21 overall after beating Northeastern State 6-2 in an elimination game on Friday morning.
• The Bronchos are led by first-year head coach John Martin
• UCO is hitting .315 as a team with 108 doubles, 18 triples, 79 homers and 391 RBI.
• The Bronchos rank fifth in the MIAA in hitting (.315), eighth in pitching (5.99) and 12th in fielding (.947 fld%).
• Jon Kamies leads the team in hitting with a .397 average to go along with a team-best 18 home runs and 73 RBI.
• Six players are hitting .313 or better and 11 have knocked in at least 13 runs.
• The Central Oklahoma pitching staff has an 5.99 ERA in 51 games and 437.1 innings pitched. The staff has walked 249 and struck out 388 during that span. Opponents are hitting .292 against UCO.
• Daulton Leiker leads the team in wins with a 6-2 mark and 79 strikeouts in 80.1 innings pitched, while Brock Stuber is 4-5 with a team-best 4.43 ERA in 13 starts.
• The Bronchos have a .947 team fielding percentage. They've committed 101 errors and have turned 27 double plays on the year.

Washburn
• Washburn enters Saturday action at 32-19 overall after losing to Emporia State 12-4 on Friday.
• The Ichabods are led by second-year head coach Harley Douglas. He has a 65-39 mark leading the WU program.
• WU is hitting .298 as a team with 110 doubles, 15 triples, 67 homers and 356 RBI.
• The Ichabods rank 10th in the MIAA in hitting (.298), fourth in pitching (5.02) and second in fielding (.972 fld%).
• MIAA Player of the Year David Gauntt leads the team with a.349 batting average, 18 home runs and is second with 49 RBI.
• Six players are hitting .304 or better and 11 have knocked in at least 12 runs.
• The Washburn pitching staff has an 5.02 ERA in 51 games and 453.2 innings pitched. The staff has walked 199 and struck out 327 during that span. Opponents are hitting .298 against WU.
• MIAA Pitcher of the Year Nick silva is 9-0 with a 2.64 ERA in 14 starts. He's allowed 100 hits in 85.1 innings.
• Ryne Dowling has a 1.64 ERA in 12 relief appearances and Lance Barkley is 0-1 with a 2.13 ERA and seven saves in 11 appearances out of the bullpen.
• The Ichabods have a .972 team fielding percentage. They've committed 55 errors and have turned 54 double plays on the year.

The Mules
• Central Missouri enters the game at 36-12 overall after the 10-0 win over Missouri Western on Friday night.
• The Mules are hitting .305 as a team with 81 doubles, 24 triples, 65 home runs and 313 RBI.
• Jake Alexander leads the team with a .398 batting average with 12 doubles, a triple, four home runs and 34 RBI. He has a .477 on-base percentage.
• Bennett Oliver is hitting .346 and leads the team in home runs with a UCM record-tying 20 and RBI with 47.
• Derek Cornell is hitting .347 with 18 extra-base hits, including six home runs and has 36 RBI.
• Cole Distler is batting .320 with 19 extra-base hits and 28 RBI.
• Dylan Farrell is hitting .318 with nine doubles, two triples and 10 home runs and is second on the team with 38 RBI.
• Matt Elliott is batting .313 out of the leadoff spot. He has nine doubles, seven triples and eight home runs to go along with 31 runs batted in.
• Ten Mules have double figure RBI on the season.
• The pitching staff has a 3.79 team ERA through 48 games and 422.1 innings pitched. The staff has 404 strikeouts and 160 walks during that span.
• Ethan Westphal is 9-2 with a staff-leading 2.72 ERA in 13 appearances and 12 starts. He leads the team with 90 strikeouts in 86.0 innings pitched and is holding opponents to a .207 batting average.
• Carlos D'Armas is 4-2 with a 4.20 ERA in 13 starts. He is second on the team with 78 strikeouts in 70.2 innings pitched. Opponents are batting .251 against him.
• Tyler House is 6-2 with a 4.74 ERA in 14 starts. He's struck out 63 batters in 74 innings pitched and is holding opponents to a .259 batting average.
• Andy Muehlberger is 1-0 with a 1.69 ERA and two saves in 14 relief appearances. He has 10 strikeouts in 10.2 innings pitched.
• Grant Gavin leads the team with 10 saves to go along with a 4-2 record and a 2.96 ERA in 21 relief appearances. He has struck out 28 batters in 24.1 innings pitched.
• Lucas Williams is 3-1 with a 3.16 earned run average and two saves in 18 appearances. He has 28 K's in 31.1 innings pitched.
• The UCM defense has a .968 fielding percentage and has committed 58 errors on the season. The Mules have turned 31 double plays on the year.

Worth Noting
• The Mules hit just .262 with runners in scoring position during the Washburn series, but swept the three-game set.
• During MIAA play, the Mules hit .313 with runners in scoring position and .619 with runners on third and less than two outs.
• The Mules currently rank seventh in the MIAA in batting with a .305 team average, they are first in pitching (3.79 ERA) and fourth in fielding (.968 fld%).

All-MIAA Mules
• After winning the MIAA Regular Season Championship, the Mules had 10 players named to the All-MIAA Team, including two first-teamers.
• Starting pitcher Ethan Westphal and reliever Grant Gavin were both named to the First Team and head coach Kyle Crookes was named MIAA Coach of the Year.
• Second Team honors went to pitcher Carlos D'Armas, first baseman Bennett Oliver and designated hitter Jake Alexander.
• Honorable Mention accolades were awarded to pitchers Tyler House and Lucas Williams and outfielders Derek Cornell, Matt Elliott and Dylan Farrell.

Saving his way in to the record books
• With his two saves in the Washburn series, Grant Gavin moved in to a tie for fifth place on the UCM single-season saves list with 10 and in to a tie for seventh place on the career saves list with 13.
• He is one save shy of third place on the single-season chart and one shy of sixth place on the career list.
• His 10 saves this season lead the MIAA and are 12th in NCAA Division II.

Blasting up the charts
• Senior Bennett Oliver tied the UCM single-season home run record when he hit his 20th of the season last Saturday at Washburn. He tied Ben Slemmer, who set the record back in 1998. His 20 home runs are second best in the MIAA and sixth in Division II.
• The MIAA record for home runs in a season is 23, set by Emporia State's Eric Shortell in 2008.
• Oliver's 26 career home runs tie him for eighth all-time at Central Missouri. The career record for home runs is 44, set by Nathan Lipowicz (1997-00).

Striking out the opposition
• After his eight-strikeout performance against Missouri Western on Friday night, Ethan Westphal has registered 90 punchouts in 86.0 inning pitched this season. That number ranks him seven all-time in a single-season in UCM history.
• He is four strikeouts shy of sixth place on the list (Seth Gilleland, 2007).
• The UCM single-season strikeout record is 129, set by Danny Powers in 2005.

Mules in the MIAA Tournament
• The Mules are 4-2 in the MIAA Tournament under head coach Kyle Crookes after Friday's run-rule win over Missouri Western.
• UCM has captured 20 MIAA Tournament titles, including 16 of the last 22 years.
• Central Missouri's last MIAA Tournament crown came in 2012.

Last time out
May 13, 2016 - (ST. CHARLES, Mo.) -- Ethan Westphal tossed a complete-game four-hitter and the Mules pounded out 13 hits en route to a 10-0 run-rule win over Missouri Western on Friday night at the Lou Brock Sports Complex.
    The Mules (36-12) wasted no time in jumping on the Griffons. Matt Elliott led off the bottom of the first with a single, went to second on Jake Alexander's walk and scored on Bennett Oliver's RBI single to right. Following an out on the base paths, Collin Nevil doubled to the gap in left center to score Oliver and UCM led 2-0.
    Cole Distler's two-out, two-run single in the third gave the Mules a 4-0 lead. UCM then broke the game wide open in the fourth. Elliott had a two-run double to the gap in right center to make it 6-0. He scored on Dylan Farrell's double to center to make it 7-0 and Alexander singled home Farrell for an 8-0 UCM lead.
    The Mules closed the game out with two more runs in the bottom of the seventh. Nevil led off the inning with a triple and scored on a Griffon fielding error for a 9-0 advantage. A walk and a single loaded the bases for Blake Wilfong, who drew a walk to push the 10th run across and end the game.
    The 10 runs were more than enough for Westphal who was on top of his game. He allowed just four hits in the game and tossed his fourth complete-game of the season. He struck out eight and walked two. His eight strikeouts pushed his season total to 90, which ranks as the seventh most in a single-season in UCM history.
    Nevil finished the game 3-for-4 with an RBI and run scored. Elliott, Farrell and Jackson Schnurbusch each had two hits, while Elliott and Distler each drove in a pair.

Mules in MIAA play
• The Mules finished 32-7 in MIAA play this season after sweeping Washburn last weekend.
• The Mules won their fifth MIAA Regular Season Championship in the last seven years and the 25th overall in program history this season.

Mules in non-conference action
• The Mules are 4-5 in non-conference action this season after the 10-0 win over Missouri Western.
• The Mules were 7-9 in non-conference games last season and are 11-14 overall in non-con action under Kyle Crookes.

The Mules at home
• The Mules are 19-3 at home after after sweeping Missouri Western last weekend.
• Central Missouri was 15-5 at home during the 2015 season.
• The Mules are 774-152-1 (.835) in 927 games played in their 41st season playing home games at Crane Stadium/Tompkins Field.

Mules on the road
• The Mules are 14-5 on the road this season after sweeping a three-game series Washburn last weekend in Topeka.
• The Mules are 26-18 on the road under head coach Kyle Crookes.

Mules in neutral site games
• The Mules are 3-4 in neutral site games after Friday's win Missouri Western.
• UCM is 6-8 in neutral site games under Crookes.

Mules in the NCAA Regional Rankings
• The Mules moved up one spot to No. 2 in this week's NCAA Regional rankings released on Wednesday. The top eight teams in the final poll earn bids to the Central Regional Tournament.
• The NCAA-II Baseball Selection Show will air on Sunday, May 15 at 9 p.m. CT on NCAA.com.

Mules in the rankings
• The Mules moved up four spots this week to No. 12 in the ABCA/Collegiate Baseball Newspaper Top 30 poll.
• The Mules jumped up 11 spots in the NCBWA Poll from No. 23 to No. 12 this week and jumped up four spots to No. 15 in the Perfect Game Baseball poll.

Mules vs. ranked opponents
• The Mules are 8-4 this season when facing a ranked opponent after sweeping a three-game set from No. 30 Washburn last weekend in Topeka.

UCM during the Crookes era
• Kyle Crookes has a 66-34 (.660) record in his second season as head coach at Central Missouri.
• This season is his first conference championship as head coach at UCM and the second title overall during his time in Warrensburg.
• The Mules went 30-22 during Crookes' first season as head coach. Ten Mules earned All-MIAA honors, including First Team honors for outfielder Trevor Jones, who went on to earn Second Team All-Region honors as well.
• The Mules were 71-29 in Crookes' two seasons as an assistant coach and captured the 2014 MIAA Regular Season Championship. The Mules garnered five First Team All-MIAA selections and three All-America honors during his two years as an assistant.
• Crookes compiled a 292-164 overall record in eight seasons as the head coach at Hutchinson (Kan.) Community College before taking over as an assistant coach at UCM.

Mules Baseball History
• The 2016 season marks the 61st in the storied history of Mules Baseball. During that span the Mules have compiled a 1,825-720-9 (.716) record in 2,554 games played.
• The Mules have won 40 or more games 17 times, including 14 straight seasons from 1999-2012, and have won 50 or more games nine times.
• The Mules have won or shared 25 MIAA championships, captured 16 regional titles and two national championships.

Mules Baseball by the Numbers
• 27 NCAA Regional Appearances (20 of the last 22 years)
• 25 MIAA Titles (17 of the last 23, including this year)
• 20 MIAA Tournament Titles (16 of the last 22)
• 16 Regional Championships
• 15 Regionals as host site
• 13 Top Five national finishes
• 4 Third place finishes
• 1 National Runner-Up
• 2 National Championships

Mules Baseball: Winningest Team of the 2000s
• The Central Missouri baseball program has had unprecedented success in the last 25 years and has been even more impressive since the year 2000. The Mules were the winningest team in all divisions of the NCAA by victories (508) and percentage (.814, 508-116) from 2000-09. That success has continued through the 2010s.
• The Mules are 794-209 (.792) since the year 2000. An average of 46 wins per season over the last 17 years.

A Tradition of Excellence in Athletics
• Entering the 2015-16 academic year, Central Missouri had won a combined 205 MIAA regular season conference championships in 14 league sports to lead all schools.
• Last season, UCM captured five MIAA regular season titles, and three MIAA Tournament crowns.
• Since 1983, the tenure of Athletic Director Jerry Hughes, UCM has won or shared 151 MIAA championships, more than any other league school.
• Central Missouri has won eight national championships since 1980 (men's and women's basketball in 1984, baseball in 1994 and 2003, women's bowling in 2003, men's basketball in 2014, and women's indoor and outdoor track & field in 2015) and 10 national championships overall.

A Tradition of Excellence in the Classroom
• Central Missouri had 218 student-athletes named to the 2014-15 MIAA Academic Honor Roll with grade point averages of 3.0 or higher.
• 29 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.
• 17 UCM student-athletes were named MIAA Academic Excellence Award winners with a 4.0 GPA.
• UCM had six student-athletes earn Academic All-Region awards in their respective sports with three of those earning CoSIDA Academic All-America honors.
• Since the year 2000, UCM is tied for sixth in NCAA-II with 49 Academic All-Americans.

Upcoming
• If the Mules beat Central Oklahoma or Washburn they advance to Sunday's MIAA Tournament Championship Game. If they lose to UCO or WU the "if necessary" game for bracket two would take place at 9 a.m. Sunday morning.