FHSU Athletics

MARSHALL, Minn. – For nearly 35 minutes, the 10th-ranked Fort Hays State women’s basketball team struggled in its season opener against Upper Iowa on Friday. The Tigers overcame a poor perimeter shooting performance to get by the Peacocks 74-62 in the opening game of the Applebee’s Classic.

Tony Hobston Postgame Interview

Upper Iowa held a one-point lead, 53-52, entering the fourth quarter, but FHSU outscored UIU 22-9 in the final 10 minutes. FHSU finally grabbed the lead for good with 6:48 remaining in the game when Jill Faxon hit a jumper to put FHSU up by one. The Tigers went on an 11-0 run to close out the game, fueled by six points from Beth Bohuslavsky and three from Faxon.

The Tigers shot just 2-of-17 from beyond the 3-point line (11.8 percent), but managed to shoot much better inside the arc (52.8 percent) to finish at 42.9 percent overall for the game. FHSU did well at the free-throw line, where it went 12-of-14.

FHSU overcame a 50 percent shooting performance by the Peacocks by forcing 30 turnovers. FHSU had just 12 in the game. Upper Iowa outrebounded FHSU 36-27.

Bohuslavsky had a team-high 17 points, while Faxon added 16 and Paige Lunsford had 10. Lunsford led the team in rebounds with five and Bohuslavsky had a team-high three assists.

The Tigers return to the court on Saturday against Applebee’s Classic host Southwest Minnesota State at 5 pm.