Setting the Scene
• For the fifth time in the last eight seasons, the Lady Bulldog Basketball team has qualified for the NCAA Division II National Tournament and they'll compete at the Central Region Championships this weekend in Warrensburg, Missouri
• SWOSU earned the No. 8 seed in the region, which means they'll face off with regional host Central Missouri in the quarterfinals on Friday evening
• This will mark the second straight season that SWOSU has faced UCM and third postseason matchup between the programs, with both prior meetings won by the Lady Bulldogs
• The matchup also features two teams with recent postseason success, as Central Missouri cut down the nets in 2018 as the NCAA Division II National Champion while SWOSU finished as the National Runner-up last season
• SWOSU Head Coach Kelsi Musick has guided her program to the NCAA Tournament in three straight seasons and she's 6-4 in the tournament, with two victories coming against Central Missouri
 
About the Opponent
(1) #12/8 Central Missouri (27-4)
• Central Missouri enters the Central Regional on a nine-game win streak and the Jennies earned the right to host the regional after winning both the MIAA Regular Season and Conference Tournament Championships
• The Jennies won the MIAA Championship by three games over Emporia State, going 18-1 in league play, and they've won their last 15 games inside the UCM Multipurpose Building
• UCM had three players earn All-MIAA recognition in MIAA Player of the Year Megan Skaggs, Co-Defensive Player of the Year Nija Collier and First Team selection Morgan Fleming
• Skaggs leads the team in scoring at 16.7 points per game while knocking down a team-high 50 three-pointers this season while Fleming puts up 16.0 points per game while dishing out 4.0 assists on average
• MIAA Coach of the Year Dave Slifer has led UCM to their fourth straight 20-win season and eighth in the past nine seasons
• UCM was the only MIAA team to rank in the top five in both scoring offense (5th, 71.9 ppg) and scoring defense (1st, 56.4 ppg) during league play
 
SWOSU Notes
• For the first time as an NCAA Division II institution, SWOSU has a three-year run of qualifying for the NCAA Tournament after previously becoming the first program in the nine-year history of the Great American Conference to claim at least a share of three consecutive GAC regular season championships
• SWOSU returns four individuals who played significant minutes during their run to the NCAA Division II National Championship game, a group led by Bethany Franks, who averaged 15.7 points, 9.5 rebounds and 4.0 steals per game in six tournament games last season
• Taber Beer was named to the All-Tournament Team last season after averaging 8.0 points per game at the Regional Championships, including the memorable game-winning three-pointer to defeat Central Missouri in the regional semifinals
• SWOSU ranks fifth in NCAA Division II in turnover margin (+8.5) and 11th in steals (364), steals per game (12.6) and three-point field goals per game (9.5)
• Tyra Aska became SWOSU's second four-time All-GAC selection after earning her second straight First Team All-GAC honor as a senior
• Aska is ranked fifth in Lady Bulldog history in points scored (1,560) and rebounds (700) while also ranking second in career steals (228) and assists (391)
• Bethany Franks enters the NCAA Tournament ranked fourth in NCAA Division II with 104 steals this season, which matches her single-season school record total from last season
• GAC Freshman of the Year Makyra Tramble has been stellar in her debut season at SWOSU, ranking fourth in the GAC in scoring (15.8 ppg), fifth in rebounding (7.9 rpg) and fourth in steals (2.4 spg) this year
• Warrensburg, Missouri, becomes the fifth different location where SWOSU has played in the Central Regional, joining Topeka, Kan., Searcy, Ark., Sioux Falls, S.D., and Hays, Kan.
 
SWOSU in the NCAA Tournament

2012-13
Central Regional (Topeka, Kan.)
(2) Central Missouri	W, 73-71
(6) Augustana	L, 64-68
2013-14
Central Regional (Searcy, Ark.)
(1) Emporia State	L, 65-97
2017-18
Central Regional (Sioux Falls, S.D.)
(6) Fort Hays State	L, 75-78
2018-19
Central Regional (Hays, Kan.)
(7) Emporia State	W, 71-65
(3) Central Missouri	W, 75-72
(1) Fort Hays State	W, 88-77
Elite Eight (Columbus, Ohio)
(7) Saint Anselm	W, 71-61
(3) Indiana (Pa.)	W, 66-57
(5) Lubbock Christian	L, 85-95 (2 OT)