WARRENSBURG, Mo. (Nov. 14, 2019) - The top-seeded Central Missouri Jennies are set to host the remaining semifinal and championship matches of the 2019 MIAA Tournament. The semifinal matches take place Friday on Jennies Field, followed by the championship match on Sunday.
Semifinal Match #1: Friday, Nov. 15 - 4 p.m.
No. 2 seed Northeastern State (14-4-1, 8-3-0 MIAA)
vs.
No. 3 seed Emporia State (13-4-2, 7-2-2 MIAA)
Semifinal Match #2: Friday, Nov. 15 - 7 p.m.
No. 1 seed Central Missouri (17-1-1, 10-0-1 MIAA)
vs.
No. 4 seed Central Oklahoma (13-4-2, 7-4-0 MIAA)
Championship Match: Sunday, Nov. 17 - 1 p.m.
Winner of semifinal match #1
vs.
Winner of semifinal match #2
The highest seed will be the home team.
Where:
South Recreation Complex - Jennies Field - Warrensburg, Mo.
The Week Ahead:
• No. 2 seed Northeastern State faces No. 3 seed Emporia State in the first MIAA Semifinal match on Friday at 4 p.m. on Jennies Field.
• No. 1 seed Central Missouri takes on the No. 4 seed Central Oklahoma in the second MIAA Semifinal match on Friday at 7 p.m. on Jennies Field.
• The winner of each semifinal match will compete in the MIAA Championship match on Sunday at 1 p.m. on Jennies Field.
• There is a $5 entry fee for the game. Student entry is free.
• Central Missouri defeated all remaining MIAA competitors previously this season. The Jens beat UCO at home 2-1, they defeated NSU on the road 3-1, and won a 3-2 overtime victory over ESU.
• The Jennies were crowned the 2019 MIAA Champions and become the No. 1 seed in the MIAA Tournament. The regular season title in the program's 11th , all achieved under the director of current UCM Head Coach,
Lewis Theobald.
• Nine Jennies earned All-MIAA honors for their performances this season. Senior
Allysa Gann was named the MIAA Defensive Player of the Year and sophomore
Lindsey Johnson was named the MIAA Goalkeeper of the year.
Makayla Toth,
Haley Freeman and
Skylar Drum joined Gann and Johnson as first-team selections while
Kassie Newsom and
Nayeli Gallo were honored as second-team selections.
Cassie Forcellini received All-MIAA honorable mention honors.
• The Jennies moved up one spot in last week's United Soccer Coaches Top-25 Poll.After spending three consecutive weeks ranked fifth, the 13-1-1 Jennies ranked fourth in the nation. This week's poll comes out Tuesday around noon, just a couple hours before game time. UCM has the only ranked MIAA team in the past week's poll.
• Central Missouri is ranked at the top of the NCAA Central Region Rankings. The Jennies are one of four MIAA members regionally ranked. Northeastern State, Emporia State and Central Oklahoma are ranked fifth, sixth and eighth.
Scouting the Competition:
#4 Central Oklahoma Bronchos
• Central Oklahoma earned the No. 4 spot in the eight-team playoff following a 12-4-2 regular season campaign.
• The Bronchos shutout Fort Hays State 3-0 in the MIAA Quarterfinals in Edmond, Okla. First-Team All-MIAA Midfielder Kelsie Eason scored two goals against the Tigers while Haley Post scored the other UCO goal.
• Kaitlyn Asher played all 90 minutes in goal in the quarterfinal match, recording three saves. The junior earned MIAA Goalkeeper of the Week in each of the final two weeks of the regular season after posting three shutouts in four wins.
• Kelsey Gordan and Asha Haile were also named All-MIAA First-Team selections. Haley Post earned second-team honors, Taryn Kedzior was named a third-team selection and three other Bronchos were honorable mention selections.
• Eason leads the Bronchos offensive attack, scoring a career-best 17 goals this season. She added eight assists, which was the second most on the team. Her 42 total points are the 12th-most in the country this season. Haile played up top with Eason and had as much success. She scored 12 goals this season behind only Eason and had the team high with 11 assists. Her 35 points are the 18th-most in the country this season.
• Central Oklahoma held opponents to a measly 8.7 shots per game this season, with opposing teams scoring 1.28 goals per game. Central posted five shutouts this season.
#2 Northeastern State RiverHawks
• The RiverHawks finished the regular season with a record of 13-4-1 and received the number two seed in the MIAA Tournament. This is the eighth consecutive season that the RiverHawks have qualified for the MIAA Tournament.
• Northeastern shutout Newman 4-0 in the MIAA Quarterfinals in Tahlequah, Okla.
• Mariah Nicolet leads the RiverHawks with 12 goals on the season, with six match-winning goals. Paulina Chavez has nine goals off 23 shots on goal and two assists. Ainsley Cunningham and Brennan Hockett have split time in net this season, with Cunningham making 31 saves and Hockett making 32 saves.
• Emily Seiler and Nicolet were NSU's only First-Team All-MIAA selections. Seiler leads the RiverHawk back line, playing 1,538 minutes so far this season. Nicolet finished the regular season with a team-high 12 goals and was second in the MIAA with six game-winners.
• The RiverHawks also landed two on the second team list with Chavez and Sarah Rector. Chavez is a three-time All-MIAA selection and Rector earned her first postseason honor. Leslie Munoz was placed on the league's Honorable Mention list for the second straight year.
• Ninth-year Head Coach Chase Wooten was named the MIAA Coach of the Year. Wooten lead the RiverHawks to a runner-up spot in the MIAA standings after being picked to finish seventh in the preseason coaches poll.
#3 Emporia State Hornets
• For the second straight season Emporia State has secured the No. 3 seed in the MIAA Women's Soccer Tournament. The Hornets finished the regular season 12-4-2, with a 7-2-2 record in the MIAA. The 12 wins are the second most in school history behind last year's 14 win season.
• Emporia State defeated Northwest Missouri 3-2 in the MIAA Quarterfinals in Emporia, Kan. Hannah Woolery scored two goals against the Bearcats while Kennedy Hoffman was responsible for one.
• The MIAA Offensive Player of the Year and Freshman of the Year, Mackenzie Dimarco, is ranked second in the nation in game winning goals and fourth in total goals. She has scored a school record 18 goals and a school record eight game winners with two assists for a school record 38 points on the season. She shattered the school record with 117 shots and 62 shots on goal. She is leading the MIAA in goals scored, game winning goals, shots, and goals per game, while ranking second in total points.
• Tanna Benefiel joined Dimarco as a All-MIAA First-Team selection. Benefiel was named first-team All-MIAA at midfield after earning third-team honors last season. She scored two goals with an assist while helping the Hornets hold their opponents to just 177 shots on the season.
• Sydney Martens earned third-team All-MIAA honors after being named honorable mention last year. She played a team high 1,647 minutes this season and was an anchor on the defense that posted seven shutouts and held eight opponents to under ten shots.
• The Hornets also had two midfielders and a defender named honorable mention selections.
Leading the Jennies:
• Toth was the leading goal scorer in the Jennies pervious matches this season against UCO and NSU, scoring two goals in each game. The first-team All-MIAA selection led the league with 42 points. Her 16 goals in the regular season was the second-most in the MIAA while her eight assists tied for third.
• Toth is also tied 9th in Division II with 6 game-winning goals, tied for 10th with 17 goals and tied 11th with 42 total points. Toth's 2.21 points per game ranks 15th int he nation.
• Newsom leads the Jens in assist and ranked second in the MIAA with nine on the season.
• With six goals on the season,
Macy Ruffalo tied for 10th in the league in goals scored. The freshman is behind Toth and Newsom for most points and goals on the team.
Ruffalo, Freeman and Gallo were responsible for the Jens three goals in their overtime victory against ESU earlier this season.
• MIAA Goalkeeper of the year and UCM's two, first-team defensive players Gann and Drum have collected seven shutouts this season, four of which were against MIAA competitors. In MIAA only matches, Johnson had a .704 goals-against average and a save percentage of .849.
