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NCAA Central Regional First Round (7) SWOSU (33-15) vs. (2) Central Missouri (38-13) Thursday, May 19, 10:00 am St. Cloud, Minn. (Joe Faber Field) Live Stats  |  Watch Live  |  Listen Live Game Notes: SWOSU  |  UCM

Setting the Scene
- Eight long days after being eliminated from the Great American Conference Tournament, the SWOSU Baseball team was selected to compete in the 2016 NCAA Division II Central Region Championships on Sunday night
- The Bulldogs earned the No. 7 seed in the regional, which will pit them against No. 2-seed Central Missouri, who is ranked 12th in the final NCBWA Top 25 poll
- SWOSU and UCM will be the first two teams to take the field at the regional, with first pitch scheduled for 10:00 am on Thursday morning in St. Cloud, Minnesota
- The regional is being hosted by St. Cloud State, who earned the top seed in the Central Region for the second straight season
 
The Opponent
(2) #12 Central Missouri (38-13)
- Regular season and tournament champions of the MIAA, winning the season title by five games before defeating Missouri Western 16-14 in the tournament championship game
- UCM went 0-3 against the Great American Conference during the regular season, suffering one-run defeats against Henderson State (6-5), Arkansas-Monticello (5-4) and Southern Arkansas (4-3)
- The Mules were 4-4 against teams from the state of Oklahoma in the regular season: Oklahoma Christian (1-0), Central Oklahoma (2-2), Northeastern State (1-2)
- Ten UCM players were named to the All-MIAA team, led by First Team pitchers Ethan Westphal and Grant Gavin, and Kyle Crookes was named the MIAA Coach of the Year
- Central Missouri's offense is ranked seventh in the MIAA with a .310 batting average and their 68 home runs is the fourth-most in the league
- UCM's pitching staff is the best in the MIAA with a league-leading 3.95 ERA, 38 wins and seven saves while holding opponents to a .244 batting average
 
The Coaches
SWOSU: Zack Saunders (135-100, 5th season)
- Two-time Great American Conference Coach of the Year, winning the award in 2013 and 2016
- In the midst of his second 30-win season as the head coach of the Bulldogs, where he has led SWOSU to four winning seasons while tutoring 24 all-conference players
- Earned his 100th career victory at SWOSU against Northwestern Oklahoma State on April 24, 2015
- Was named the GAC Coach of the Year in 2013 and he has tutored 14 players who have earned All-GAC status, including four first-team selections, one All-Central Region honoree, one regional gold glove award winner and one MLB draftee
- Previously served as an assistant at SWOSU for six seasons under former Bulldog coaches Charles Teasley and Scott Selby
- Played collegiately at Kansas State following two seasons at Connors State playing on nationally-ranked junior college teams
- Has a record of 135-100 while leading the Bulldogs, including 7-10 record against Arkansas Tech and an 0-6 mark at the Great American Conference Tournament
 
Central Missouri: Kyle Crookes (68-35, 2nd season)
- Named the MIAA Coach of the Year this season in his second year as UCM's Head Coach and fourth year overall with the Mules after two years as an assistant coach
- Prior to coming to Warrensburg, Crookes spent the previous eight seasons as the head coach at Hutchinson Community College, compiling a 292-164 overall record while leading the Blue Dragons
 
Postseason Honors
- SWOSU had eight players named to the 2016 All-GAC Baseball list on Thursday, while head coach Zack Saunders was named the GAC Coach of the Year for the second time (2013)
- Earning First Team All-GAC honors were starting pitcher Jon Chidester, outfielders Korbin Polston & Jacob Spring and designated hitter Zach Barton
- Second Team All-GAC selections included starting pitcher Gunnar Cook and outfielder Tanner Dearman while relief pitcher Quintin Dougherty and second baseman CJ Faddis received honorable mention
- Polston and Barton added selections to the CoSIDA Academic All-District Teams, becoming the first such honorees from SWOSU Baseball since 2004
 
SWOSU in the Postseason
- SWOSU has been an NCAA Division II program since 1998 and they will be making the programs first-ever appearance in the Division II Baseball Championship tournament
- Since joining NCAA Division II, SWOSU is 1-14 in postseason baseball with the lone win coming against Texas A&M-Kingsville in the 2011 Lone Star Conference Tournament
- The Bulldogs are 0-8 in four GAC Tournament appearances, including an 0-2 mark this season when they were eliminated by Arkansas Tech
 
SWOSU Notes
- The Bulldogs had a six-game win streak -- their longest of the season -- snapped in the GAC Tournament against Arkansas Tech and they now look to bounce back in their first meeting against UCM since 2001
- SWOSU has only faced three teams in the NCAA Central Regional field (Arkansas-Monticello, Central Missouri, Emporia State) since joining NCAA Division II and they are 1-1 against the Mules after the teams split a doubleheader in Weatherford on February 25, 2001
 
Looking Ahead
- The winner of Thursday morning's contest advances to play the winner between (3) Minnesota Duluth and (6) Emporia State on Friday at 8:30 pm
- The losing team will return to action on Friday at 1:30 pm to face the loser between UMD and ESU in an elimination contest