By GERARD WELLBROCK
Hays Post

HAYS, Kan. – Fort Hays State shot 61-percent from the field, hit 11 3-pointers and Rob Davis scored 25 or more points for the fifth straight game as the Tigers (4-2) beat Sterling College 92-63 Saturday at Gross Coliseum.

Davis scored a game-high 25 and dished out five assists. He was 8-of-11 from the floor and 4-of-6 from beyond the arc and hit five of his six free throws.

JaQuan Smith and Lake Reed both scored 12. Smith also pulled down seven rebounds. Hadley Gillum scored eight and had eight boards.

Mark Johnson Postgame Press Conference

JaQuan Smith Postgame Interview

Game Highlights

The Tigers opened the game on a 9-0 run and led by as many as 15 in the first half and by as many as 30 late in the game.

By GERARD WELLBROCK
Hays Post

HAYS, Kan. – Jill Faxon led six Tigers in double-figures with 19 points as the Fort Hays State women beat Sterling College 91-67 Saturday at Gross Coliseum. Tatyana Legette added a career-high 18 points, Nikola Kacperska 14 while Kacey Kennett and Taylor Rolfs both added 11 as the Tigers improve to 6-0 for the fifth time under head coach Tony Hobson.

Toby Hobson Postgame Press Conference

Game Highlights

Fort Hays State used a 17-2 first quarter run to go up 12. They scored 12 straight in the second quarter to push the lead to 18 at halftime.

One day after tying a school record with 16 3-pointers, the Tigers knocked down 11 against the Warriors with Kacey Kennett hitting three and Kacperska, Faxon and Madison Mittie all with two.

FHSU shot 51-percent from the field but were only 10-19 from the free throw line.

By GERARD WELLBROCK
Hays Post

HAYS, Kan. – Fort Hays State set a new school record for points in a game and tied the single-game record with 16 3-pointers as they beat Bethel College 125-31 Friday at Gross Coliseum. The 125 points surpassed the 120 scored against McPherson College on November 17, 2014. The Tigers also hit 16 3-pointers against Northwestern Oklahoma State on November 18. 2009.

Tony Hobson Postgame Interview

Game Highlights

The Tigers first four baskets all came from beyond the arc as they built a 29-3 first quarter lead and were up 61-15 at halftime.

Fort Hays State had 41 assists on their 49 made baskets with seven each for Nikola Kacperska and Taylor Rolfs. and outscored the undermanned Threshers 40-3 off turnovers and 18-0 on second chance points.

Carly Heim led five Tigers in double-figures with a career-high 18 points. Madison Mitte added a career-high 16 while Kacey Kennett and Taylor Rolfs both scored career-high;s with 13 points a piece. Taylor Chandler scored 11.

HAYS, Kan. – Fort Hays State head women’s basketball coach Tony Hobson has announced the addition of three student-athletes for the 2017-18 season during the early signing period. Joining the Tigers next season will be Kayla Bush, Whitney Clampitt and Whitney Randall.

“All three of these players have traits and characteristics that fit perfectly with what we are trying to do here,” said Hobson. “They are all hard workers, they have all had success in the classroom and they come from successful high school programs. We are very excited to get them on campus and plugged into our system.”

Kayla Bush joins the Tigers from Morristown High School in Morristown, N.J. Bush will serve as the captain of the basketball team this season after helping the Colonials to a 40-11 record over the last two seasons. A 6-foot-3-inch post player, Bush averages seven points and 5.5 rebounds per game. She received Most Improved Player honors from the Daily Record. In the offseason, Bush plays for the NJ Panthers, a travel team sponsored by adidas. “Kayla is a very talented player, and it’s clear that she has a strong basketball mind and puts in the work necessary to succeed,” Hobson said.

Whitney Clampitt comes to FHSU from Chillicothe High School in Chillicothe, Mo. Clampitt, a 5-foot-9-inch guard, has earned first team all-conference and all-district honors after all three seasons of her high school career to date, in addition to a pair of all-state accolades. She earned Class 3 Player of the Year and Dream Team honors from KMZU. In three years with the Hornets, Clampitt averages nearly 14 points per game while pulling down four rebounds per night. She has received three academic letters for her work in the classroom. “Whitney is very athletic – she leaves everything out on the court each time she plays,” said Hobson.

Whitney Randall joins the Tigers from Alva High School in Alva, Okla., where she has helped her team to three-straight state championships. She earned second team all-tournament honors at the state tournament as a sophomore before picking up first-team accolades last season as a junior. The five-foot-ten-inch guard earned multiple conference all-tournament awards while averaging 13.1 points and 4.1 rebounds per game for the Goldbugs. Randall has been a member of the Oklahoma Honor Society since 2013, the National Honor Society since 2014 and will serve as the NHS secretary this year. Her team was also named academic state champions twice. “Whitney is a big, athletic presence in the backcourt,” said Hobson. “Her tenacity and physicality will fit perfectly in our system.”

By GERARD WELLBROCK
Hays Post

WICHITA, Kan. – Fort Hays State scored the final six points after Newman went on a 7-0 to pull within two with 1:48 to play and the Tigers hold off the Jets 73-65 Tuesday at Fugate Gymnasium. Rob Davis, who hit a deep 3-pointer with less than 30 seconds to play to push the lead to six, led the Tigers with game-high 24 points. Hadley Gillum added 13 points and a game-high 13 rebounds, and Trey O’Neil, who hit a 3-pointer with a little over six minutes to play to break a 57-all tie and give the Tigers (3-2) the lead for good, added a career-high 12 points.

Mark Johnson Postgame Interview

Game Highlights

Fort Hays State used a 14-3 first half run to build a nine-point lead and led by seven at the half. They quickly pushed the lead to 13 a little over three minutes into the second half, but the Jets (1-4) used  21-8 run over the next 8 1/2 minutes to tie the game at 57 with a little over seven minutes to play.

The Tigers, who battled foul trouble much of the night, shot 48-percent including 7-of-18 from beyond the arc. Newman was held to a season-low 34-percent but knocked down 11 3-pointers and outscored the Tigers by eight at the free throw line.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Fort Hays State wrestler Jon Inman was named the MIAA Wrestler of the Week on Monday (Nov. 21) for his winning effort at the UNK Holiday Inn Open in Kearney, Neb. this past weekend.

Inman was named the Most Outstanding Wrestler at the UNK Holiday Inn Open. Ranked No. 4 nationally at 197 pounds in Division II, he dominated to a 4-0 performance, picking up two technical falls, a decision, and a fall. He blanked Barrett Hamilton of Morningside 16-0 in the first round, defeated Cody Marquez 6-2 in the quarterfinals, blitzed past Ken Burkhardt Jr. of Concordia (Neb.), then pinned Trey Schlender, an unattached wrestler, at 4:27 in the championship match. Inman is now 11-0 on the season and has won all three tournaments he has competed in this season.

FHSU Sports Information

HAYS, Kan. – Fort Hays State fell in the national quarterfinal match for a third consecutive year as Rockhurst capitalized on one mistake early in the second half to escape Hays with a 1-0 decision. The Tigers outshot the Hawks, but saw their season end at 14-5-1 overall. Rockhurst moved to 18-2-3 overall.

FHSU Postgame Press Conference

Rockhurst Postgame Press Conference

All four of Fort Hays State’s first half shots were great goal-scoring opportunities, but the frame of the goal got in the way on three of the attempts. At 16:12 Maurizio Costa had a great try from just inside the 18-yard box hit the right post past a diving keeper. Three minutes later, the Tigers were denied once more on a flurry of attempts at the goal. Mauricio Castorino had a one-on-one with the keeper Logan Feldmann that he shot right into Feldmann’s hands. Michael Cole collected the rebound and Feldmann made another save as the ball rebounded out near the top of the box. Derick Gonzalez struck the ball and it hit the crossbar. The Tigers could have easily scored twice in those offensive situations and it would ultimately come back to sting in the end.

The mistake by the Tigers occurred in the 49th minute when Killian Gorman was unable to get enough on a header intended for goalkeeper Michael Yantz. Rockhurst had sent two passes forward from Sal Caruso and Adam Michel that got to the top of the box and with Gorman not able to get enough pace on his header, Kaleb Jackson dashed in to chip the ball over the hands of Yantz for the only goal of the match.

The Tigers had two more great opportunities in the final 10 minutes of the match. Arsenio Chamorro had a shot in near the net off a pass that found a diving Feldmann in the 82nd minute. In the match’s final minute, Derick Gonzalez also had a strike in near the goal that once again found Feldmann’s arms and the Hawks ran out the clock.

Feldmann had seven saves in goal to send the Hawks to the national semifinals for the second straight year. He moved to 18-2-3 with the win. Michael Yantz made three saves for FHSU and went to 8-5-1 on the season. Fort Hays State outshot Rockhurst 13-8 in the match.

The Tigers are now the three-time defending Central Region Champion and this was the first time FHSU earned the right to host the Super Regional on its home field.

FHSU Sports Information

By GERARD WELLBROCK
Hays Post

HAYS, Kan. – Gokul Nateson banked in an off-balance 3-pointer as time expired to lift No. 21 Colorado School of Mines to a 70-67 win over Fort Hays State Saturday, ending a five-game losing streak at Gross Coliseum. Nateson, who scored 10 of his 14 points in the second half, hit the game winner following two Rob Davis free throws with 27 seconds left to tie the game.

Mines (3-0) shot 56-percent from the field including 61-percent in the second half.

Mark Johnson Postgame Interview

Game Highlights

Luke Schroepfer hit a 3-pointer at the end of the first half to give the Orediggers a 34-33 halftime lead. A 9-0 run early in the second half helped them go up 10 with 9:49 to play.

The Tigers (2-2) responded with a 9-1 run to pull within two on four different occasions but only managed to tie the game on Davis’ free throws.

Davis led the Tigers with 20 points, JaQuan Smith added 12 and Hadley Gillum along with a team best seven rebounds.

Caleb Waitsman led Mines with 17 points and eight rebounds.

By Dustin Armbruster

Fort Hays State completed their two game road trip to St. Cloud, Minnesota on Saturday at the Huskies Classic with a dominate in over the Bemidji State Beavers.

Fort Hays trailed just once at 2-1 then ran away from Bemidji State leading 23-12 after the first quarter. The Tigers ended the quarter on a 10-2 run to take a three point lead and push it to 11. Fort Hays continued the run into the second quarter, scoring the first eight points, making the run 18-2 and led 31-12. Fort Hays dominated the second quarter 29-9 and pushed the lead as high as 33 and led 52-21 at half.

Coach Tony Hobson

Fort Hays had little trouble in the second half cruising to a 91-58 win. The Tigers led by as many as 52 in the third quarter while outscoring the Beavers 28-7 in the 3rd. Fort Hays was led in scoring by the 22 of Jill Faxon, one off her career high. Niki Kacperska added a season high 14, while Carly Heim added a career high 13. Eleven different players scored for the Tigers in the victory that puts Fort Hays at 4-0 on the season. Bemidji State falls for the first time this season and is 2-1.

Highlights

The Tigers play their first home game of the season this coming Friday versus Bethel College and follow that up with a second home game Saturday versus Sterling College.

ST. LEO, Fla. – The Fort Hays State women’s cross country team finished 18th at the 2016 NCAA Division II Championships on a sun-drenched Saturday morning in central Florida. The Tigers picked up 473 team points en route to their 18th-place finish, the best finish for an MIAA team at the national meet this year. A total of 244 runners took to the six-kilometer course, with 32 schools vying for the national title.

Shea Bonine led the Tigers to the line in 21:34.4, finishing 41st after passing nine runners over the final kilometer. Senior Micki Krzesinski wrapped up her career with an 88th-place finish, crossing the line in 22:14.8. Sophie Dalmasso followed closely behind, wrapping up in 22:22.0 to finish 102nd. Chelsea Jackson traversed the course in 22:45.5, good for 142nd. Yessenia Gonzales rounded out the scoring for the Tigers in 185th, completing the race in 23:28.3.

Grand Valley State took home the team title with 116 team points aided by individual champion Kendra Foley, who won the race in 20:01.8, a new meet record at the 6k distance. MIAA champion Southwest Baptist finished 21st as a team with 509 points.

FHSU Sports Information