Mules Close Out Regular Season Play at Northeastern State

WARRENSBURG, Mo. (May 3, 2018) - Central Missouri Mules Baseball wraps up regular season play on the road this weekend. The Mules already have a spot in the MIAA Tournament locked up and will look to enter the postseason with some momentum.

Opponent: Northeastern State RiverHawks (25-21, 16-17 MIAA)

When: Friday, May 4 - 3 p.m.
            Saturday, May 5 - 2 p.m.
            Sunday, May 6 - 1 p.m.

Where: Tahlequah, Okla. - Thomas C. Rousey Field

First Pitch
• Central Missouri closes out the regular season on the road as they take on the Northeastern RiverHawks this weekend.
• The Mules finished 20-4 at home during the regular season after claiming a 2-1 series win over Missouri Southern last weekend.
• Central Missouri is 11-7 in true road games this season.
• The Mules have clinched a spot in this year's MIAA Baseball Championship Tournament.

Quick Hits
• Central Missouri was picked to finish second in the MIAA Preseason Coaches' Poll.
• Central Missouri totaled 32 wins last year. The Mules have won at least 30 games in all four seasons under Coach Crookes. 2018 also marks the 25th straight season UCM has won 30 or more games.
• The Mules have finished with a winning record in each of the last 32 seasons. 
• The Mules are 23-10 in MIAA play and sit second in the conference standings. 

The Series
• The Mules and RiverHawks have only met on the diamond 31 total times, with the Mules owning a 22-9 advantage. 
• Central Missouri swept Northeastern State last season, 3-0, and has claimed two of the last three series against them.
• Kyle Crookes is 8-2 against the RiverHawks as the Mules head coach. He was 4-0 against them in his first year but went 1-2 in his second season. He picked another sweep, 3-0, against them in his third season as head coach in 2017.

Northeastern State
• Northeastern State enters the final weekend of the regular season at 25-21 overall and 16-17 in MIAA play. They are right at eighth in the league standings with a chance to make the postseason
• The RiverHawks are coming off a tough 3-0 series sweep last weekend by Emporia State. They've dropped their last two series, with the other coming against Nebraska-Kearney.
• Defensively, the RiverHawks are one of the top-five teams in the MIAA. As a team they sport a 4.71 ERA to sit fourth in the league. They are holding teams to a .269 batting average, which is also fourth lowest in the MIAA.
• Dustin Berrong is Northeastern State's ace with a 3.55 ERA in 12 starts this season. He is 5-5 on the hill and has 70 strikeouts in 71 innings pitched. Berrong's ERA, innings pitched, and strikeouts all rank in the top-10 in the MIAA.
• Trevor Nance has been solid out of the bullpen for NSU with a 3.56 ERA while appearing in 16 games. He's fanned 24 batters in 30.1 innings pitched. Lane Rice has the most appearances on the mound with 18 and sports a 4.81 ERA with a 5-1 record. Two RiverHawk pitchers lead the team with two saves in Brayden Boyd and Nolan Sturgeon. Both pitchers have appeared in 15 games this season.
• Ben Strahm has the second most starts this year with 10, while appearing in 11 games. His 60.1 innings of work are second most on the team as are his 63 strikeouts. He is 2-5 on the hill and sports a 4.18 ERA.
• Offensively, NSU struggles to hit the ball. They have a .274 batting average, which is fourth worst (10th) in the MIAA. Their 257 runs scored and 58 doubles are the least amount in the league. They do not struggle in the power department, however. They have 56 home runs on the year which is third most in the MIAA.
• Zack Henderson is the team's top hitter with a .344 batting average and 28 RBI, despite playing in 10 fewer games this season. Colton Wright has been a solid in MIAA games for NSU with a .359 batting average to go along with six home runs and 15 RBI.  
• Three other players join Henderson and Wright with a batting average over .300. Alex Massie is hitting .341 to sit second on the team. Jaxon Phipps (.331) leads the team in RBI with 32, while Erick Espinosa is hitting .309. Overall, Wright rounds it out with a .308 batting average. Tristan Ridenour is just batting .210 but leads the team with 11 home runs this season.
• Defensively, the Lions sport a .957 fielding percentage which is eighth in the MIAA. They have allowed 36 stolen bases and have committed 71 errors.

The Mules
• Central Missouri is 32-13 overall with a 23-10 mark in MIAA play. UCM currently sits second in the MIAA regular season standings and is ranked No. 9 in the latest NCBWA Top-25 rankings. They have clinched a spot in the MIAA Tournament and are still No. 1 in the second set of NCAA Central Region rankings.
• The Mules closed regular season play at home with a 2-1 series win last weekend against Missouri Southern.  The series finale was a tight one as the Mules claimed the series with a 1-0 shutout win.
• As a team, the Mules are third in the MIAA with a .316 batting average. UCM is holding teams to a .346 on base percentage and is averaging just under eight runs a game at 7.42. 
• The top of the order continues to produce for the Mules this season. Mason Janvrin and Erik Webb have a combined 123 hits and 66 RBI. Janvrin is batting .361 from the leadoff spot, which is ninth in the MIAA and has two home runs to go along with nine doubles. His 46 runs scored lead the club and are tied for 10th in the league. He also leads the teams with 20 multiple hit games.
• Webb is second on the team in RBI with 39. His .356 batting average is third on the club and he has 30 extra base hits, including 10 home runs. His 12 stolen bases are second most on the team and tied for seventh in the MIAA. His .688 slugging percentage and 17 doubles are the most on the team as well.
• The bottom of the lineup has been reliable for UCM. Donovan Ditto has played in 40 of the Mules 45 games, with 36 starts all at second base. Ditto has a combined 33 hits from the No. 8 and 9 spot in the lineup. In 120 at bats overall, Ditto is hitting .283 with a .343 on base percentage. 
• Travis Able is the team's leading hitter at .377, which is seventh in the MIAA. He has .455 on base percentage and is third on the team with 35 RBI. His 63 hits are second on the team.
• Collin Nevil is batting .343, while Justin Graff-Rowe is batting .279. Harrison Schnurbusch is hitting .271. Nevil leads the team with 44 RBI. John Fairchild (31), Schnurbusch (23), and Graff-Rowe (22) have at least 20 RBI, while Ditto (17), Payne McCutcheon (14), and Zak Wahalin (17) all have at least 10 RBI.
• In 366 innings pitched, Mules pitchers are giving up just one hit per inning. Opponents are hitting just .261 off of UCM pitchers, but have reached base in other ways with 143 walks and have reached on 67 errors and 59 hit batsmen.
• UCM pitchers have also done well at holding runners on base. The Mules have given up just 22 stolen bases in 45 games on 35 attempts and have picked four runners off. Their 22 stolen bases allowed are the fewest in the MIAA.
• On the flip side, the Mules have stolen 86 bases in 122 attempts themselves, which leads the MIAA. Janvrin has a league leading 29 stolen bases, while Webb is second on the team with 12. Schnurbusch is third with nine. Able is third with seven.
• The Mules have hit 47 home runs from 13 different players. Nevil, Webb, Janvrin, McCutcheon, Graff-Rowe and Fairchild have all slugged at least two home runs this season. Nevil leads the way with 13, which is tied for fourth in the MIAA. Webb is second on the club with 10.
• The Mules have gotten a lot of production from their catcher position. McCutcheon has supplied some power with two home runs and 14 RBI. Whalin has 23 hits in 69 at bats for a .333 batting average and Cole Hoover is hitting .238 with 10 hits and eight RBI.
• UCM's bullpen continues to play well. While Mules pitchers have a 4.40 ERA this season to lead the MIAA, the bullpen ERA is 3.58. Luke Mercer has nine saves on the year, which is third most in the MIAA. He sports a 2.37 ERA and has struck out 23 batters in 19 innings of work.
• Coby Seiz still has the most work out of the pen. He's thrown 32.2 innings and given up just seven earned runs and 26 hits with 28 strikeouts. He has three saves and sports a 1.93 ERA. Ross Juliana has been solid as well with a 4-1 record. He has pitched 21.1 innings and has 20 strikeouts on the year.

Last Time Out
WARRENSBURG, Mo. (April 29, 2018) - Central Missouri Mules Baseball scored just one run in their series finale against the Missouri Southern Lions but it was all they needed as they held on for a 1-0 win Sunday afternoon in the regular season home finale. With the win, the Mules improve to 32-13 overall and 23-10 in the MIAA.

Play-by-Play
• The game's only run came in the bottom of the eighth, but both teams had a few opportunities to score prior to the Mules taking the lead.
• In the the top of the seventh, the Lions (24-23, 12-21 MIAA) got runners on first and second with one out and threatened to score. Brandon Reid then got a strikeout and forced a groundout to end the top of the seventh.
• UCM also threatened to score in the seventh. Collin Nevil was hit by pitch to get on and immediately stole second to get in scoring position with one out. MSSU kept Nevil stranded as John Fairchild struck out and Justin Graff-Rowe lined out to second base.
• The Lions once again had a chance to score in the top of the eighth. Cory Canterbury got on base on a fielder's choice and then stole second base. Mike Million got him to third with a single through the right side, but a Alec Alvarez flew out to left field to leave the runner stranded. 
• The game's lone run came in the bottom of the eighth. Harrison Schnurbusch was walked to leadoff and made it to second on a Donovan Ditto sacrifice bunt. Zak Whalin then grounded out to advance him to third. Mason Janvrin wasted little time plating home Schnurbusch with a RBI single to center field on the first pitch.
• Coby Seiz and Luke Mercer worked the eighth and nine innings on the hill, respectively, to close out the game and give the Mules the series and their 20th home win of the season.

Mules Stat Leaders
• Reid worked seven innings on the mound for the Mules in his start. He gave up just five hits and fanned five batters, while allowing just two walks. 
• Janvrin finished 1-4 and had the game-winning RBI for the Mules.
• Both Schnurbusch and Ditto went 1-2, while Schnurbusch had a run scored.
• Seiz picked up the win on the hill to improve to 3-1 on the year. 
• Mercer earned save No. 9 of the year after closing out the ninth. 

For the Lions
• Starting pitcher Zac Shoemaker pitched 7.2 innings for MSSU. He gave up four hits and allowed the game's only run, but had a game-high six strikeouts.
• Denver Coffee and Richard Fullerton both went 2-3 to lead the Lions in hits.
• Joe Kinder was 1-3 in the game and drew a walk.
• Johnny Balsamo also went 1-3 on the day.

News and Notes
• The Mules finish the regular season with a 20-4 record at Crane Stadium/Tompkins Field. Their 20 home wins are the most won under Kyle Crookes and they are now 67-16 at home under him.
• UCM is now 9-0 when holding opponents between 0-2 runs in a game. It is also UCM's first win this season when scoring less than two runs.
• Reid's seven innings pitched is a career-high in his time at UCM. He has now struck out at least two batters in his last seven games pitched.
• Mercer's ninth save is now seventh-most in a single season in Mules Baseball History. He needs just one more to reach 10 and move into a tie for sixth.
• The Mules 1-0 win on Sunday is their second shutout win of the season.
• The Mules will be home again this year, but it will be in the postseason. Central Missouri will host the 2018 MIAA Baseball Championship Tournament at Crane Stadium/Tompkins Field this May 10-13.

Up Next
• The regular season series finale. The Mules will hit the road to Tahlequah, Okla. for their final three-game set of the regular season. They will take on the Northeastern State RiverHawks May 4-6. Games times are set for 3 p.m., 2 p.m., and 1 p.m., respectively.

Mules in the Polls
• The Mules moved up 14 spots in the latest NCBWA Top-25 Poll after being ranked No. 23 last week.
• Central Missouri has been ranked in the last 10 NCBWA polls after starting the season unranked.
• The Mules moved up four spots to No. 16 in the latest Perfect Game Division II rankings and are still 20th in the latest ABCA/Collegiate Baseball Newspaper rankings. 
• UCM stands pat at No. 1 in second set of the NCAA-II Central Region Rankings.

Mules in Non-Conference Action
• Central Missouri went 9-5 in non-conference games during the 2017 season
• The Mules are 35-24 overall in non-conference action during Crookes' three seasons.
• UCM went 9-3 in non-conference games during the regular season. 

Mules in MIAA Play
• The Mules finished 23-13 in MIAA play last season and are 101-43 in conference play under Kyle Crookes.
• The Mules finished fourth in the regular season standings in 2017. They have won 25 overall regular season championships in program history.
• Central Missouri is 23-10 in conference play after claiming a 2-1 series win over Missouri Southern this past weekend..

Mules at Home
• The Mules went 14-4 in home games during the 2017 season and are 20-4 in 2018. 
• Central Missouri was 15-5 at home during the 2015 season and is 67-16 at home under Crookes.
• The Mules are 808-160-1 (.834) in 969 games played in 43 seasons playing home games at Crane Stadium/Tompkins Field.
• Central Missouri will host the 2018 MIAA Baseball Championship Tournament at Crane Stadium/Tompkins Field this May.

Mules on the Road
• The Mules went 12-11 on the road in 2017. 
• The Mules are 50-37 on the road under head coach Kyle Crookes.
• Central Missouri is 11-7 in true road games this season.

Mules in Neutral Site Games
• UCM has started 1-2 in neutral site games following the Houston Winter Invitational. 
• The Mules are 22-16 in neutral site games under Crookes.
• Central Missouri does not have a scheduled neutral site game for the rest of the regular season.

UCM During the Crookes Era
• Kyle Crookes has a 137-68 (.668) record now in his fourth season as head coach at Central Missouri.
• In 2016, he won his first conference championship as head coach at UCM and the second title overall during his time in Warrensburg.
• During his first three seasons at the helm, 30 players have earned All-MIAA honors, including seven First Team nods. Seven players have earned All-Region honors, one All-American and two players have been selected in the MLB Draft.
• 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 2018 season marks the 63rd in the storied history of Mules Baseball. During that span the Mules have compiled a 1,896-754-9 (.715) record in 2,658 games played.
• The Mules have won 40 or more games 18 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 17 regional titles and two national championships.

Mules Baseball by the Numbers
• 28 NCAA Regional Appearances (21 of the last 24 years)
• 25 MIAA Titles (17 of the last 24)
• 21 MIAA Tournament Titles (17 of the last 24)
• 17 Regional Championships
• 15 Regionals as host site
• 14 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 865-243 (.781) since the year 2000. An average of 46 wins per season over the last 18 years.

A Tradition of Excellence in Athletics
• Central Missouri has won a combined 214 MIAA regular season conference championships in 14 league sports to lead all schools.
• This past fall, Central Missouri Jennies Soccer won their first NCAA Division II National Championship with a 1-1 (5-3 PK) win over Carson-Newman. 
• This past winter, Central Missouri Jennies Basketball captured their 11th MIAA regular season championship and seventh Central Region crown this season. They defeated Ashland, 66-52, to win the 2018 NCAA Division II Women's Basketball Championship.
• Last season, UCM captured three MIAA regular season titles, one MIAA Tournament crown and two NCAA Regional Championships.
• Since 1983, the tenure of Athletic Director Jerry Hughes, UCM has won or shared 160 MIAA championships, more than any other league school.
• Central Missouri has won 10 national championships during Hughes' tenure (men's and women's basketball in 1984, baseball in 1994 and 2003, women's bowling in 2003, men's basketball in 2014, women's indoor and outdoor track & field in 2015, women's soccer in 2017 and women's basketball in 2018, and 12 national championships overall.
• In 2016-17, Central Missouri won the inaugural MIAA's Commissioner's Cup trophy for the conference's top overall athletic department.

A Tradition of Excellence in the Classroom
• Central Missouri had 252 student-athletes named to the 2016-17 MIAA Academic Honor Roll with grade point averages of 3.0 or higher.
• 22 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.
• 20 UCM student-athletes were named MIAA Academic Excellence Award winners with a 4.0 GPA.
• UCM had five student-athletes earn CoSIDA Academic All-America honors in their respective sports. 
• All-time UCM is fourth in NCAA-II with 103 Academic All-Americans.
• Carly Thomas of Jennies Bowling was awarded prestigious NCAA Postgraduate Scholarships last year.

Upcoming
• The Mules will begin postseason play. They host the 2018 MIAA Baseball Championship Tournament at Crane Stadium/Tompkins Field on May 10-13. The Mules seeding and opponent are still to be determined.