Muleskinner

Issue date: 10/12/06 Section: Homecoming 2006

go for it- Carla Geades, member of the 1984 national championship winning Jennies' basketball team, prepares for a two-pointer against Valdosta.

override- Brian Pesko, of the 1984 national championship winning Mules' basketball team, escapes a triple threat to add to his 25-point game against St. Augustine.

There are 16 sports competing at the NCAA Div. II level at Central, many of which have seen great success on the national stage.

Rob McCutcheon, director of athletic media relations, said the Mules and Jennies have won four national championships: The 1984 men's and women's basketball championships, and the 1994 and 2003 men's baseball championships.

Athletic Director Jerry Hughes recalls these special teams.
"Anytime you win a national championship, those are huge highlights," Hughes said.

Hughes said you have to talk about the 1984 basketball championships, because on the same court within five hours of each other, both the mens' and women's teams became champions. This is significant because it is not likely to happen again, since the men's and women's games have been separated.

Along with the two national championships won by Mules' baseball, the team has been in the NCAA World Series 10 out the past 13 years. Darin Hendrickson, head baseball coach, said the Mules have made it to regional play for the past 13 years and have finished no worse than third in five of the past six years.

Hendrickson said Mules' baseball has a very proud tradition.
"[It's] one that has lofty expectations, like all of our sports; one that is known nationally and operates with professionalism and dedication," Hendrickson said.

The Jennies' bowling team has also had national success. McCutcheon said the women's bowling team won the national championship in 2003, but at the time, it was not NCAA-affiliated. After that year, the Jennies became a part of NCAA athletics and won second place in 2004 and 2005.

Peggy Martin, head coach of Jennies' volleyball, is pleased with the evolution of sports at Central. Martin became the Jennies' head coach in 1976.

"Everything just improved; the facilities have improved, and all the teams have good coaching staffs," Martin said.

She talked about the rise of women's sports at Central, with the addition of the bowling and soccer teams. Martin has also coached some very good volleyball teams.

"The 1987 team was my best team," Martin said. "We finished second in the nation; that team was full of great players."
Central has had a host of great players in all sports.

McCutcheon said in 2005 the wrestling team's Blamen Paskalev, wrestling at 197 pounds, won an individual national championship, going 15-0.

This was the first time in the University's history this had happened. There were also individual national championships won by Jennifer Drum-Greer, track and field, Steven Edwards, track and field, and Kristin Anderson, cross country and track and field.

Throughout the years, Central cross country and track and field have combined for 24 individual national championships and wrestling has had five.

There have also been a multitude of All-Americans to come from the various sports. There have been 27 All-American volleyball players, along with hundreds of All-Americans from the other sports, McCutcheon said.

Men's baseball has had a lot of great players over the years. Hendrickson said there have been nine players drafted by major league teams in the past three years. Every year, there are two or three players selected as All-Americans.

There have been 11 Mules drafted to play professional football and more than 60 have played on some level of professional sports.

Willie Fritz, head football coach, said there have been four players who have gone pro since he has coached at Central: Colsten Weatherington with the Dallas Cowboys, Todd Devoe with the Denver Broncos, and Rod Green and Delanie Walker with the San Francisco 49ers.

Some of the players who stand out in Fritz's mind are Kevin Nickerson, who holds the NCAA record for kick and punt returns with 10, Keagan Coleman and Lee Thomson because they had great careers and were four-year starters for the program.

"If you're good enough, they'll find you; it's not about what level [division] you're at; the trick is being a good enough player," Fritz said.

Kristin Anderson is another individual who has accomplished much. She was named the top NCAA Div. II Scholar-Athlete this year. McCutcheon said Anderson is a two-time national champion in track and cross country and she "epitomizes what student athletics at Central is all about."

All of the sports at Central value academics.

"The first thing I always tell a guy when we recruit him is we want him to get his degree," Fritz said.

This attitude has translated into athletics having an overall 3.0 GPA, a higher GPA than the rest of campus.

Along with having great players, there have also been great coaches to come through Central. Hughes mentioned several coaches like Jim Woldrige, a successful basketball coach who went on to coach at several Div. I schools; Brad Hill, who is coaching baseball at Kansas State University; and Phog Allen, who went on to coach at the University of Kansas and for whom Allen Field House is named.

"Central Missouri has a rich tradition in intercollegiate athletics," Hughes said. "A lot of famous and successful basketball coaches have come through Central; and the success of the basketball program is highlighted by the dual championship of 1984."

The goal of any program is to be competitive and ultimately winners. Martin said every team at Central is doing just that. This past year, Central finished 7th in the U.S. Sports Academy Director's Cup competition, an award given to the best overall collegiate athletics program in the country.

This award is given on a points system, based on each team's success. Central had 483.75 points, with 13 out of 16 teams playing in NCAA post-season competition.

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