Mules Baseball Heads to Sioux Falls for NCAA Super Regional

WARRENSBURG, Mo. (May 22, 2019) - Central Missouri Mules Baseball will go for their 18th NCAA Regional Championship this weekend. Mules need to win a best-of-three series with Augustana to move on to the Division II College World Series in Cary, N.C.

Opponent
#1 Augustana Vikings (43-14, 29-6)

Where
Sioux Falls, S.D. - Ronken Field at Karras Park

When
Friday-Saturday, May 24-25
Friday, May 24 - 6 p.m.
Saturday, May 25 - 12 p.m. (if necessary game to follow)

Tickets
Tickets for each day cost:
$10 - Adults
$5 - Seniors (65+)
$3 - College Students (with ID)
$3 - Youth (3-18)

First Pitch
• Central Missouri won their 26th MIAA regular season championship, going 24-9 in the league. 
• They followed that by winning their 23rd MIAA Tournament Championship two weeks ago going 4-1 in Pittsburg, Kan.
• UCM went 3-0 in their half of the regional bracket last weekend in Warrensburg, setting up a two-out-of-three series with No. 1 Augustana this Friday and Saturday.
• The Mules needed to defeat a pair of MIAA teams to reach this point, Missouri Southern and Central Oklahoma twice.

Quick Hits
• Central Missouri totaled 39 wins last year. The Mules have won at least 30 games in all five seasons under Coach Crookes.
• The team improved by seven wins and won an MIAA title and returned to the NCAA postseason in 2018.
• The Mules have 41 wins this season, the 26th straight season UCM has won at least 30 games. 
• The Mules have finished with a winning record in each of the last 32 seasons. 
• This marks the 30th time UCM has advanced to the NCAA Regional and it's their 16th time as host. 
• The Mules have now won back-to-back MIAA Tournament Championships.

On the Air
• There will be live stats available on www.ucmathletics.com.
• Bob Jackson will be on the call for all Mules games in Sioux Falls streaming online at www.warrensburgradio.com and on 1450 KOKO AM and 98.5 The Bar FM
• All games will also be live streamed on the Augustana Stretch internet portal page

The Series
• This will be just the third all-time meeting for the Mules against Augustana. Each team has a win.
• The Vikings win came last year at the NCAA Regional, 9-6 while the Mules win came back in 2001, a 5-1 win in Warrensburg.

Augustana
• Augustana knows a little something about winning. They are the defending NCAA Division II Champions, winning it all in 2018.
• They've followed that up with wins in the Northern Sun regular season and conference championship tournament and are currently 43-14 this season.
• The Vikings are led by their pitching who boast a staff ERA of 3.69.
• Northern Sun Pitcher of the Year Max Steffens is 9-0 this season with a 2.44 ERA. He pitches to contact with just 66 strikeouts in 92.2 innings. He's struggled in his last two outings though, allowing 11 earned runs in his last nine innings.
• Seth Miller has made 12 starts and is 6-3 with a 3.20 ERA.
• Tanner Brown leads the Vikings with 82 strikeouts. He's started half of his 18 appearances and is 7-1 with a 2.70 ERA.
• The bullpen uses a committee approach. Michael Brandt leads the team with four saves. Miller has two and Ryan Helgeson has three. 
• Offensively, Jordan Barth leads the team hitting .445. He has nine home runs and 45 RBI.
• Riley Johnson has driven in a team-best 54 runs.
• JT Mix is reaching base at a .480 clip while Will Olson has eight home runs and 49 RBI.
• The Vikings love to take extra bases, they have stolen 150 this season in 171 attempts. Michael Svozil leads the team with 32. Seven Vikings have at least 10 stolen bases.
• Of the Vikings 617 hits, 28% have been for extra bases with 121 doubles, 14 triples and 34 home runs. By comparison, 33% of the Mules hits have gone for extra bases.  
• Augustana is also one of the better defensive teams, with a .974 fielding percentage and 51 errors this season.

Post Season Awards
• Erik Webb became the 10th MIAA Player of the Year in team history and the first since Bret Schwartz in 2012. 
• Webb was joined by fellow outfielder Mason Janvrin on the first team, and relief pitcher Jonathan Sprinkle. 
• Three Mules made the All-MIAA Second Team: starting pitcher Mason Green, catcher Zak Whalin and shortstop Alex Madera. 
• Harrison Schnurbusch at third base and Michael Sinks at utility wre selected to the Third Team and Ben Kelsch (SP), Cole Taylor (1B) and Donovan Ditto (2B) made All-Conference Honorable Mention.
• Janvrin also earned his 2nd straight gold glove in centerfield. 
• Webb was also selected as the Division II Conference Commissioners's Association (D2CCA) Central Region Player of the Year and as a First Team outfielder.
• Jonathan Sprinkle was named to the D2CCA First Team as well as a relief pitcher and Mason Janvrin made the Second Team outfield. 

Individual Milestones
• Donovan Ditto is nine hits away from 100 and one RBI shy of 50. Zak Whalin needs eight mroe hits for 100.
• Mason Janvin needs just two more hits to become the all-time single-season hits king at UCM. He is also three away from 200. He needs one more stolen base to move to eighth in a single season and three more to move to seventh most for a career.
• Erik Webb is in the UCM all-time top-10 in doubles (60, 3rd), triples (14, 6th) and home runs (36, 3rd). He is one home runs away from second and eight from the all-time leader. He is also six doubles and three triples away from the UCM all-time record. He is also nearing the top-10 career and single season RBI lists, needing three more for a single season and four for the career top-10 list. With four more hits, he'll also be in the single-season top 10.
• Luke Lucas needs 10 strikeouts for 100 and Mason Green 12. 
• Jonathan Sprinkle is three strikeouts away from 100 and one save for seventh most in a single season.
• Luke Mercer has 12 career saves, needing one more to move to eighth.

Who's Hot? NCAA Regional Edition
• Mason Janvrin had 10 hits in 14 at bats last weekend in the regional with six runs and five RBI.
• Mules hitters had a .370 batting average and .424 on base percentage.
• UCM pitchers sported a 2.33 ERA and help opponents to a .207 batting average.
• Ben Kelsch threw a complete game allowing one run on six hits with eight strikeouts.
• Josh Schumacher and Erik Webb each hit .417 with five hits in 12 at bats.
• Bryce Kearns and Luke Mercer each tossed two scoreless innings in relief.

MIAA Leaders
• As a team, the Mules lead the MIAA with a .334 batting average, the only team above .300 in the league. They also have the highest slugging percentage at .517 and on-base percentage at .408. No other team in the league is slugging better than .500 or has an on-base above .400. 
• Three Mules are in the top-10 in the MIAA in hitting. Mason Janvrin is tied for the lead at .426 and Erik Webb right behind him at .414. Alex Madera is ninth hitting .354.
• Janvrin also leads the league in runs scored (70), stolen bases (36) and hits (103) and is sixth with 46 RBI.
• Webb's .842 slugging percentage is tops in the league as are his 74 runs batted in, 25 doubles, five triples and 19 home runs. He is second in the MIAA in runs scored with 59 and hits with 89.
• With 52 runs batted in, Michael Sinks is third in the MIAA. 
• Alex Madera is tied for third with 19 doubles. 
• Mason Green's 3.18 ERA is eighth in the MIAA and his .203 opposing batting average is third. His eight wins are tied for the second most in the MIAA. 
• Ben Kelsch has collected 34 punchouts looking, which leads the MIAA. 
• Jonathan Sprinkle has earned eight saves which is fourth. 

Mules in Non-Conference Action
• UCM went 9-3 in non-conference games during the 2018 regular season. 
• They are finished with nonconference regular season games this season and played to a 10-4 record. They are 7-1 in nonconference postseason games. 
• The Mules are 51-29 overall in non-conference action during Crookes' four-plus seasons.

Mules in MIAA Play
• The Mules won the MIAA with a 24-9 record. It's their 26th MIAA Regular Season Conference Championship. They also have 23 MIAA Conference Tournament Championships with back-to-back Tournament Championships in 2018-19. 
• The Mules finished 24-12 in MIAA play last season and are 121-53 in conference play under Kyle Crookes.
• The Mules finished third in the regular season standings in 2017. 

Mules at Home
• So far, UCM is 27-5 this season when playing at Crane Stadium.
• The Mules went 24-4 in home games during the 2018 season.
• Central Missouri is 99-21 at home under Crookes.
• The Mules are 838-165-1 (.835) in 1,004 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 and hosted half of the NCAA Central Region Tournament where they went 3-0.

Mules on the Road
• The Mules went 12-9 on the road in 2018.
• They are 11-6 this season in true road games.
• The Mules are 63-44 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 4-3 at neutral sites. 
• The Mules are 26-20 in neutral site games under Crookes.

Mules in the NCAA Tournament
• Central Missouri has gone 75-26 in 101 NCAA Regional Tournament games. 
• Under Coach Crookes, the Mules are 12-5 in NCAA Tournament games. 

UCM During the Crookes Era
• Kyle Crookes has a 185-86 (.683) 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. He added a tournament title in 2018 and his second regular season championship in 2019.
• Crookes is up to four MIAA Championships, two regular season and two tournament following 2019.
• During his five seasons at the helm, 52 players have earned All-MIAA honors, including 11 First Team nods and Player of the Year Erik Webb in 2019. 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 2019 season marks the 63rd in the storied history of Mules Baseball. During that span the Mules have compiled a 1,944-772-9 (.715) record in 2,725 games played.
• The Mules have won 40 or more games 19 times, including 14 straight seasons from 1999-2012, and have won 50 or more games nine times.
• The Mules have won or shared 26 MIAA regular season championships, 23 MIAA tournament championships, captured 17 regional titles and two national championships.

Mules Baseball by the Numbers
• 30 NCAA Regional Appearances (23 of the last 26 years)
• 25 MIAA Regular Season Titles (18 of the last 26)
• 23 MIAA Tournament Titles (19 of the last 26)
• 17 Regional Championships
• 16 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 913-261 (.778) 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.
• UCM has since added four more MIAA Championships trophies this season with the Mules Baseball regular season and tournament titles and Mules Indoor and Outdoor Conference Track and Field titles. 
• The Mules Baseball MIAA Tournament Championship in 2019 was their 23rd in program history along with 26 regular season, and they have now won back-to-back MIAA Tournament Championships. 
• 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
• The winner of the NCAA Super Regional will be the Central Region representative in the NCAA Division II College World Series in Cary, NC June 1-8.