WARRENSBURG, Mo. (Feb. 21, 2019) - Central Missouri Mules Baseball will stay here in Warrensburg for their MIAA opener this week.

Opponent
Emporia State Hornets (2-4, 0-0 MIAA)

Where
Warrensburg, Mo.- Crane Stadium/Tompkins Field

When
Thursday-Friday, Feb. 21-22
Thursday - 3 p.m.
Friday - 12 p.m. doubleheader

On the Air
• Live stats for all games are available at www.ucmathletics.com

First Pitch
• Central Missouri and Emporia State have moved their MIAA opening series to Warrensburg this week.
• The Mules and Hornets will play three games in two days at Crane Stadium/Tompkins Field.
• Game on is scheduled for 3 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 21 with a doubleheader set for game two starting at 12 p.m.
• Central Missouri swept three games from Minnesota-Crookston last week in their home opener and stand at 5-4 on the season.

Quick Hits
• Central Missouri totaled 39 wins last year. The Mules have won at least 30 games in all four seasons under Coach Crookes.
• The team improved by seven wins and won an MIAA title and returned to the NCAA postseason in 2018.
• 2018 also marked 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. 
• This year Central Missouri is off to a 5-4 start after sweeping Minnesota-Crookston in their home opening series last weekend.
• These will be the first MIAA games for the Mules this season. UCM was 24-12 last year in the MIAA and finished third in the regular season standings.   

The Series
• The Mules and Hornets have met more than 150 times in their history. UCM leads the all-time series 111-52.
• Last season, the Mules took two of three against ESU at home during the regular season.
• They also defeated them twice in the MIAA Tournament, including in the Tournament Championship game, 2-1. 

Emporia State
• Emporia State is off to a 2-4 start to their season. They lost their first four, two in extra innings, but have rebounded with a doubleheader sweep of William Jewell.
• At 2-4, the Hornets are ninth in the MIAA standings. They were picked to finish fifth in the MIAA preseason coaches poll.
• The biggest change to the Hornets this season came on their bench. Gone is long time coach Bob Fornelli, and in his place is former Mule Seth Wheeler. Wheeler has been with ESU since 2015-16 where he was previously the pitching and catcher's coach.
• The team has fielded a pretty consistent lineup with seven having started at least five of the team's six games.
• Mitch Sloan is the team's leading hitter with a .389 average and seven hits. He also has five of the team's nine stolen bases.
• As a team, the Hornets are hitting just .241. Cooper Minnick's eight hits are the most on the club. 
• Paul Claassen has provided some power with four extra base hits - 2 doubles and 2 home runs. 
• Tanner Cairnes has been lights out on the mound with a 0.73 ERA in 12.1 innings with 18 strikeouts. Unfortunately, his team hasn't provided him any run support as he has zero wins to show for his efforts. Cairnes has also walked just one batter this season. 
• Cairnes isn't the only pitcher who's been snakebit though. Jake Barton also has an ERA under 1.00 (0.75) in 12 innings and no wins. He's fanned seven and iven up just six hits.

Schedule Changes
• It wouldn't be baseball season without some schedule changes. Due to unplayable field conditions in Emporia, the Mules and Hornets will play their series at Crane Stadium/Tompkins Field in Warrensburg. A single-game Thursday and a doubleheader Friday afternoon.
• Additionally, the Mules have postponed their single game with Missouri S&T scheduled for Wednesday, Feb. 20 with no make up date yet announced. 

Individual Milestones
• Starter Ben Kelsch is one strikeout away from 100.
• With one more save, Luke Mercer will have 10 for his career. He is two away from cracking the all-time top-10
• Junior Erik Webb needs 6 RBI to reach 100 and 10 hits for 150. 
• Mason Janvrin is two steals away from 50 for his career. 
• Releiver Coby Seiz needs two more strikeouts for 50. 
• Zak Whalin is four hits away from 50. 

Who's Hot?
• Just about everybody. UCM hit .485 as a team last week in the series sweep of Minnesota-Crookston. Not only did they hit, but their pitchers carried a 2.74 ERA with 31 strikeouts in 23 innings.
• Mason Janvrin hit .667 with five stolen bases. He has hit in all 9 games this season and has a 21 game hitting streak dating back to the end of 2018.
• Michael Sinks drove in seven runs in 11 at bats with four of his seven hits going for extra bases.
• Michael Evans was 6-10 with four doubles and six RBI.
• Mason Green didn't give up a hit in his last start going 6+ as an inherrited runner scored. He struck out eight.
• Ben Kelsch allowed two hits in five shutout innings to earn the win.

MIAA Leaders
• Through nine games, the Mules lead the MIAA in average at .328 and are tied for the lead with 12 home runs. 
• The Mules 82 strikeouts are the second most in the conference and their 26 strikeouts looking are tied for the league lead.
• Mason Janvrin is all over the MIAA leaderboard. He's fourth with a .459 batting average and fifth with a .533 on base percentage. His 15 runs lead the league as does his 8 stolen bases. With 17 hits he is one behind the league leader.
• Noone in the MIAA has a higher slugging percentage than Erik Webb's .879. His three home runs are tied for second, as are his 13 runs batted in. 
• Webb, Kole Ficken and Micah Evans are all tied for third in the MIAA with four doubles.
• With a 2.45 ERA, Ben Kelsch is eighth in the MIAA.
• Mason Green is sixth in the league with a .180 batting average against. 

Mules in Non-Conference Action
• UCM went 9-3 in non-conference games during the 2018 regular season. 
• They are off to a 5-4 start this year. 
• The Mules are 40-28 overall in non-conference action during Crookes' four seasons.

Mules in MIAA Play
• The Mules finished 24-12 in MIAA play last season and are 102-45 in conference play under Kyle Crookes.
• The Mules finished third in the regular season standings in 2017. They have won 25 overall regular season championships in program history and 12 MIAA Tournament titles. 

Mules at Home
• The Mules went 24-4 in home games during the 2018 season.
• Central Missouri is 72-16 at home under Crookes.
• The Mules are 815-160-1 (.836) in 976 games played in 43 seasons playing home games at Crane Stadium/Tompkins Field.
• Central Missouri was the host and winner of the 2018 MIAA Championship Tournament. 

Mules on the Road
• The Mules went 12-9 on the road in 2018
• They are 1-2 to start this season.
• The Mules are 52-42 on the road under head coach Kyle Crookes. 

Mules in Neutral Site Games
• UCM went 3-4 in neutral site games last season.
• In three games this season, UCM is 1-2 at neutral sites. 
• The Mules are 23-20 in neutral site games under Crookes.

UCM During the Crookes Era
• Kyle Crookes has a 149-76 (.662) record now in his fifth 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.
• Coach Crookes added another MIAA Tournament Championship in 2018 and another 10 All-MIAA selections and one to the First Team, bringing the totals to 40 All-MIAA selections and eight to the First Team. 
• 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 2019 season marks the 63rd in the storied history of Mules Baseball. During that span the Mules have compiled a 1,908-762-9 (.714) record in 2,678 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
• 29 NCAA Regional Appearances (22 of the last 25 years)
• 25 MIAA Regular Season Titles (17 of the last 25)
• 22 MIAA Tournament Titles (18 of the last 25)
• 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 877-251 (.777) since the year 2000. An average of 46 wins per season over the last 19 years.

A Tradition of Excellence in Athletics
• Central Missouri has won a combined 215 MIAA conference championships in 14 league sports entering 2018-19 to lead all schools.
• The Mules Baseball MIAA Tournament Championship in 2018 was their 22nd in team history and the second MIAA Tournament Championship Central Missouri has won last year, joining Jennies Soccer.
• Last fall, Central Missouri Jennies Soccer won their first NCAA Division II National Championship with a 1-1 (5-3 PK) win over Carson-Newman. 
• Last winter, Central Missouri Jennies Basketball captured their 11th MIAA regular season championship and seventh Central Region crown. They defeated Ashland, 66-52, to win the 2018 NCAA Division II Women's Basketball Championship, the second in program history.
• In 2016-17, 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 161 MIAA championships, more than any other league school entering the 2018-19 year.
• 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. They followed that up by winning the 2017-18 Commissioner's Cup as well.

A Tradition of Excellence in the Classroom
• Central Missouri had 256 student-athletes named to the 2017-18 MIAA Academic Honor Roll with grade point averages of 3.0 or higher.
• 35 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.
• 19 UCM student-athletes were named MIAA Academic Excellence Award winners with a 4.0 GPA.
• 10 had five student-athletes earn CoSIDA Academic All-America honors in their respective sports. 
• All-time UCM is third in NCAA-II with 114 Academic All-Americans.

Upcoming
• Next week the Mules are scheduled to play Truman State in a single game Tuesday, Feb. 26 at 2 p.m. They also host Northeastern State next weekend, March 1-3.