The Tigers are off to their best start since 2004 after going 4-0 at the Oklahoma Panhandle Tournament this weekend. On Saturday (Sept. 1), Fort Hays State won two five-set matches up its record to 4-0 this season.
Fort Hays State def. Fort Lewis 3-2 (25-15, 28-26, 15-25, 19-25, 15-7)
The Tigers started the morning match strong, winning the first two sets. Set one saw the Tigers win seven of the first eight points to build a 7-1 advantage. Kylee Hoagland totaled two kills in the early run. Fort Lewis could not close the gap in set one, trailing by at least four points the whole set. FHSU finish the set with a big run, winning five straight points to go up 24-14. Sara Hewson closed set one with a kill.
Set two was much closer. After falling behind 5-3, FHSU scored six points to go up 8-5, highlighted by a Hewson kill. The Tigers opened up the lead to six at 13-7; however, the Skyhawks hit six of the next seven points to only trail 14-13. After the Tigers went up 23-20, Fort Lewis knotted the score at 24-24. The score tied again at 25-25 and 26-26 before the Tigers score two straight for the set two win.
In the third set, the score was close early on, but the Skyhawks scored eight of nine points to go up 17-9 after the score was 9-8. The Tigers scored five straight points after a change at setter when Lauren Lorenz entered, however, Fort Lewis score eight of the last nine points to close out set three.
The fourth set was similar to set three. It was even early at 5-5 then the Skyhawks went on a run of seven points. The Tigers could not get back into the set even after a late run, dropping 25-19.
In the crucial fifth set, it was all Tigers from the start. FHSU scored the first six points on two Kayla Zoglman aces, two Hoagland kills and a Taylor Mares kill. Up 9-4, the Tigers went back-to-back on kills from Hewson and Jenna Ulrich then went up 12-4 on a Skyhawks error. The Tigers closed out the match with two kills from Ulrich and a kill from Hoagland.
Fort Hays was very impressive in set five, totaling 11 kills and hitting .524 without an error on 21 total attacks.
Ulrich led the offense with 15 kills, seven blocks and a .538 hitting percentage. Hoagland followed with 14 kills and Hewson totaled 12 kills. Zoglman had 43 of the 52 assists for the Tigers, and on defense, Weinman’s 30 digs were a team-high.
Fort Hays State def. Southern Arkansas 3-2 (23-25, 25-19, 25-15, 21-25, 15-12)
In a close first set, the Tigers fell 25-23 as the Muleriders scored the final two points after being tied at 23. The Tigers seemed to be on the verge of winning the set, going up 19-15, but SAU won six straight points to take a 21-19 advantage. Fort Hays State tied it back up at 22 and 23 before SAU won the last two points.
The Tigers took control of set two after being even at 18-18. FHSU totaled six points in a row, including a kill by Jenna Ulrich, Kayla Zoglman and Sara Hewson. Hewson scored the set point, giving the Tigers the 25-19 win.
It was all Fort Hays in set three as the Tigers pulled out to an early 9-4 advantage that forced SAU to call timeout. The timeout did not seem to help as the Tigers pushed the margin to 11 at 21-10 on a Hewson ace. Two Kylee Hoagland kills brought the set to 24-15 and Taylor Mares put down a kill for the set, 25-15.
FHSU dug themselves into an early hole in set four as Southern Arkansas tallied the first six points aided by four Tiger attack errors. The Tigers did close the gap, tying the set at 17-17. After keeping it even at 20-20, SAU totaled five of the last six points for the 25-21 set win.
Hoagland and Ulrich were key in set five, both putting down three kills. The Tigers pushed out to a 10-6 lead after kills from Hoagland, Ulrich and Mares. Ulrich ultimately put the match away with a kill and a 15-12 set win.
Ulrich, Hoagland and Mares all reached double figures in kills with 12 apiece from Ulrich and Hoagland and 11 from Mares. Ulrich continued her great hitting percentage, hitting .478 for the match. Zoglman had 42 assists to lead the Tigers, and Makenzie Weinmanhad 18 digs. Hewson also hit double figures in digs with 11.
The Tigers travel to the Colorado Mesa Tournament next weekend (Sept 7-8). On Friday, Fort Hays starts with Texas Woman’s at 10 a.m. then plays Grand Canyon at 12:30 p.m. and Colorado Mesa at 7 p.m.
– FHSU Sports Information –