Top-Seeded Mules Baseball Opens MIAA Tournament Play Thursday in Joplin

Baseball | 5/7/2025 2:00:00 PM

• Top seeded, No. 3-ranked and MIAA Regular Season Champion University of Central Missouri Mules Baseball (38-10) is set to open play in the 2025 MIAA Baseball Tournament with a quarterfinal game against No. 8 seed Missouri Southern (27-24) on Thursday, May 8, at noon at Warren Turner Field in Joplin, Mo., on the Missouri Southern campus.
• The Mules are coming off a three-game, MIAA series sweep of the Newman Jets May 2-3 in Wichita, Kan. Central Missouri swept a doubleheader on Friday, May 2, 11-8 and 17-12, to secure their sixth straight and 31st overall MIAA Regular Season Championship before wrapping up the regular season with a 9-3 victory Saturday, May 3. UCM capped off the regular season with an MIAA record of 29-7. 
• Entering the MIAA tournament, UCM is led at the plate by  infielders Jacob Steele (.391 avg., 58 R, 77 H, 12 2B, 3 3B, 11 HR, 53 RBI, .650 SLG%, 28 BB, .475 OB%, 9 SB), Cole Kreisel (.379 avg., 43 R, 53 H, 8 2B, 1 3B, 3 HR, 25 RBI, .514 SLG%, 32 BB, .522 OB%, 11 SB) and Grant Hollister (.323 avg., 30 R, 41 H, 12 2B, 1 3B, 2 HR, 34 RBI, .480 SLG%, 9 BB, .426 OB%, 9 SB), and outfielders Vance Tobol (.374 avg., 63 R, 73 H, 14 2B, 3 3B, 19 HR, 64 RBI, .769 SLG%, 23 BB, .453 OB%, 21 SB), Dayvin Johnson (.348 avg., 55 R, 62 H, 15 2B, 4 3B, 12 HR, 53 RBI, .680 SLG%, 20 BB, .422 OB%, 11 SB) and Isaiah Keller (.329 avg., 37 R, 57 H, 8 2B, 1 3B, 11 HR, 50 RBI, .578 SLG%, 17 BB, .385 OB%, 15 SB). On the mound, the Mules are paced by right-handers Jack Scott (4-1, 4.33 ERA, 60.1 IP, 69 H, 33 R, 29 ER, 23 BB, 52 SO, .290 opp. avg.), Evan O'Toole (5-0, 3.86 ERA, 51.1 IP, 44 H, 26 R, 22 ER, 21 BB, 49 SO, .233 opp. avg.), JD McReynolds (6-0, 1.46 ERA, 3 SV, 37.0 IP, 20 H, 9 R, 6 ER, 11 BB, 59 SO, .153 opp. avg.) and Jake Wilson (4-0, 4.23 ERA, 38.1 IP, 37 H, 23 R, 18 ER, 21 BB, 54 SO, .255 opp. avg.), and left-hander Sawyer Allen (5-0, 4.25 ERA, 1 SV, 36.0 IP, 33 H, 23 R, 17 ER, 17 BB, 32 SO, .239 opp. avg.). 
• As a team, UCM is hitting .328 while limiting opponents to .247 hitting. The Mules have a 4.56 team ERA and a .971 fielding percentage. 
• Through 48 games, Central Missouri leads the MIAA in hitting (.328) and ranks second in pitching (4.56 ERA) and sixth in fielding (.971 pct.).
• In the latest NCAA-II statistics, Tobol is 12th in home runs (19), 23rd in runs per game (1.34), 26th in RBI per game (1.36) and 28th in RBI (64), while Steele is 19th in hits per game (1.64) and Kreisel is 28th in on-base percentage (.522). 

• Jacob Steele was voted the Co-Player of the Year and Cole Kreisel was tabbed Freshman of the Year, highlighting numerous All-MIAA postseason accolades for the 2025 MIAA Regular Season Champion University of Central Missouri Mules Baseball Team, it was announced Tuesday, May 6, by the conference office.
• Steele (3B), Vance Tobol (OF) and Dayvin Johnson (DH) all earned First Team All-MIAA honors while Evan O'Toole (SP), JD McReynolds (RP) and Isaiah Keller (OF) were Second Team All-MIAA selections and Jack Scott (SP), Jack Kreisman (SP), Jake Wilson (RP), Chris Massey (RP), Chase Heath (C), Grant Hollister (2B) and Kreisel (SS) garnered Honorable Mention All-MIAA recognition.
• Steele (3B) and Chase Wilcox (1B) both were selected to the All-MIAA Gold Glove Team for their defensive performances throughout the regular season.

• Missouri Southern: Thursday's MIAA tournament quarterfinal contest vs. Missouri Southern will mark the 128th meeting in the all-time series going back to 1983. UCM leads the series, 99-28. The Mules swept the Lions in a three-game MIAA series in Joplin earlier this season April 17-18, winning 11-5, 15-12 and 18-2 (seven innings). Central Missouri and Missouri Southern met in the MIAA Tournament Championship game last season in Pittsburg, Kan., with the Lions winning, 18-16. UCM's last win against MSSU in the MIAA tournament was a 15-0 victory in the tournament title game in Warrensburg. 

• UCM checks in at No. 1 in the third NCAA-II Central Regional Rankings released Wednesday, May 7. The top eight teams in the final rankings unveiled on May 11 at 9:30 p.m. CT on NCAA.com advance to the 2025 NCAA-II Baseball Central Region Tournament, with the top two teams each hosting a four-team, sub-regional. 
• Central Missouri is ranked number five in the latest American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA) Division II Poll released May 6 and is third in the most recent National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association Division II Poll unveiled May 7. 

• Vance Tobol tallied his 200th career hit as a Mule on a single to left field in the fourth inning of game one of a doubleheader Friday, April 18, at Missouri Southern while Jacob Steele earned his 200th career knock on a lead-off double against Northeastern State on Saturday, April 26. Going into the MIAA tournament, Tobol has 216 career hits while Steele is at 204. 

• Hitting streaks: Cole Kreisel, 11 games; Vance Tobol, 4 games; Kaleb Ceola, 4 games
• On-base streaks: Cole Kreisel, 11 games; Will Krzykowski, 11 games; Chase Heath, 10 games; Jacob Steele, 8 games; Kaleb Ceola, 7 games; Ayden Blachowicz, 6 games; Vance Tobol, 6 games

• Through 48 games, UCM is outscoring its opponents in the sixth, seventh, eighth and ninth innings, 198-98. Overall, the Mules are outscoring their adversaries, 445-253. 

• Central Missouri is 23-2 on the season when it scores in the first inning and 26-5 when it scores first in a game. 

• Eleventh-season head coach Kyle Crookes became the winningest coach in Mules baseball history after earning career win number 419 Friday, March 28, vs. No. 24 Fort Hays State (recap).
• Crookes passed former UCM head coach Brad Hill, who went 418-91 from 1995-2003. Entering the weekend, Crookes has a career record of 431-142. 

• Kyle Crookes has a 436-143 (.753) record in his 11th season as head coach at Central Missouri. Crookes earned his 400th career win in UCM's 11-8 victory over Jefferson in Houston, Texas, Feb. 2. 
• Crookes is the winningest coach in program history.
• 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. The 2021 season brought Crookes his third MIAA regular season and tournament championship, and the 2022 season marked Crookes's fourth regular season and tournament titles. UCM's 2023 regular season and tournament titles were the fifth with Crookes as the skipper. The 2024 regular season crown was the sixth for Crookes while the Mules' 2025 regular season title marks Crookes's seventh as head coach. 
• Crookes is up to 13 MIAA Championships, seven regular season and six tournament.
• He also has four regional championships to his credit in 2016, 2019, 2021 and 2024.
• During his 10 seasons at the helm, 116 players have earned All-MIAA honors, including 36 First Team nods, Players of the Year in Erik Webb in 2019, Dusty Stroup in 2021, Brennen van Breusegen in 2022 and 2024, and Jacob Steele in 2025, Pitcher of the Year Conner Wolf in 2024, and Co-Freshman of the Year Jack Scott in 2024 and Freshman of the Year Cole Kreisel in 2025. Twenty-nine players have earned All-Region honors, 13 All-American and five 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.

• The 2025 season marks the 69th in the storied history of Mules Baseball. During that span the Mules have compiled a 2,194-829-9 record in 3,032 games played.
• The Mules have won 40 or more games 23 times, including 14 straight seasons from 1999-2012, and have won 50 or more games 10 times.
• The Mules have won or shared 31 MIAA regular season championships, 16 MIAA tournament championships, captured 20 regional titles and two national championships (1994, 2003).

• 34 NCAA Regional Appearances (26 of the last 29 years)
• 31 MIAA Regular Season Titles
• 16 MIAA Tournament Titles
• 20 Regional Championships
• 20 Regionals as host site
• 16 Top Five national finishes
• 5 Third place finishes
• 2 National Runners Up finishes
• 2 National Championships

• Central Missouri totaled 52 wins in 2024. The Mules have won at least 30 games in all 11 full seasons under Coach Crookes. They won 20 of 23 games in 2020 before the season was cut short due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
• The team made their 20th trip to the NCAA-II College World Series in 2024. 
• The Mules have finished with a winning record in each of the last 37 seasons.

• If the Mules win their quarterfinal game, they'll advance to the MIAA Baseball Tournament semifinals scheduled for Friday, May 9, at 1 p.m. in Joplin, Mo.