WARRENSBURG, Mo. – No. 2-ranked and top-seeded University of Central Missouri Mules baseball won the 2024 NCAA-II Central Regional Championship after posting a 9-4 victory over the sixth-seeded Arkansas-Monticello to complete a 2-0 series sweep of the Boll Weevils in the best-of-three Super Regional Saturday afternoon, May 25, at Crane Stadium/Tompkins Field.
With the win, the Mules (52-8) captured their 20th regional championship in program history and secured a spot in the 2024 NCAA-II College World Series scheduled for June 1-8 at the USA Baseball Training Complex in Cary, N.C. UCM's opening game opponent, as well as game date and time will be announced at a later date.
The Mules scored four runs in the top of the first inning and never looked back enroute to the five-run victory.
Vance Tobol opened the scoring with a RBI single up the middle before
Cole Moore smacked an infield, RBI bunt single, and
Chase Heath delivered a two-run double to left-center for the 4-0 advantage.
A sacrifice fly from
Jack Schark upped the Central Missouri lead to 5-1 in the top of the second prior to a two-run top of the third increasing the UCM advantage to 7-2. Tobol crushed his 11th home run of the season – a lead-off homer to left-center before Moore crossed home plate on an RBI ground-out from Heath.
Central Missouri added a run each in the fifth and eighth innings for the final nine run tally. Heath belted his 16th home run of 2024 on a solo round-tripper to left field in the fifth prior to
Jacob Steele scoring on a UAM error in the eighth.
Heath went 2-for-4 with a homer and double and drove in four runs while Tobol was 2-for-5 with a home run and two RBIs, pacing the Mules at the plate in the victory.
UCM relief pitcher
Bryce Taylor (4-0) earned the win on the mound after allowing no earned runs on just three hits with two strikeouts and zero walks in 2 1/3 innings.
Camden Tanner, Kirk Woolf, Chaz Poppy and Aidan Garrett all had two hits, leading the Boll Weevils (35-24) in the batter's box.
Arkansas-Monticello starting pitcher Charles Peacock (3-5) suffered the setback on the rubber, surrendering six runs – two earned – on five hits with one strikeout and two walks in two innings of work.
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