Dave Slifer Head Women's Basketball Coach | University of Central Missouri Athletics
Dave Slifer Head Women's Basketball Coach | University of Central Missouri Athletics
The University of Central Missouri Jennies basketball team will begin its 56th season with two games at the MIAA/NSIC Crossover event in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. The Jennies will face UMary on Friday, Nov. 14, at 1 p.m., followed by a matchup against Augustana on Saturday, Nov. 15, at 4 p.m., both held at the Elmen Center.
Central Missouri concluded its previous season with a 17-15 overall record and tied for seventh place in the MIAA standings with an 8-11 conference mark. The team advanced to the quarterfinals of the MIAA Women's Basketball Tournament before losing to Fort Hays State.
Returning this year are four starters from last season's roster. Among them is Reese Schaaf, who was named a WBCA Honorable Mention All-American and earned MIAA Co-Newcomer of the Year honors after leading both her team and the conference in scoring (18.6 points per game) and rebounding (10 rebounds per game). She also recorded a conference-best 18 double-doubles and scored in double figures in all but one game last season.
Taylor Weishaar also returns as an All-MIAA selection. She led both Central Missouri and the conference in blocks, averaging 2.1 per game last season while contributing significantly in scoring and rebounding.
Other returning players include Cierra Smith, Rylee Vierthaler, and Jolie Bonderer.
This season’s roster features seven newcomers: six freshmen—Amaria Musick, Makenzie Farmer, Jayla Griffith, Hayden Heim, Neely Schaaf, and Olivia Robben—and one junior college transfer, Elysa Martinez from Cowley County Community College.
In preseason polls for the upcoming campaign, Central Missouri was picked to finish fourth in both the MIAA Coaches’ Poll and Media Poll.
The team includes siblings Reese Schaaf (senior) and Neely Schaaf (freshman), both from El Dorado Springs.
Head coach Dave Slifer enters his 22nd year with Central Missouri ranked fifth among all NCAA women’s basketball coaches for career victories with 822 wins over his 36-year career. In Division II specifically, he is second only to Tom Shirley of Jefferson University.
Central Missouri’s home opener is scheduled for Tuesday, Nov. 18 against MSU Moorhead inside Jerry M. Hughes Athletics Center in Warrensburg as part of their annual School Day event. Tickets can be purchased through UCMAthletics.com/tickets.
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