FHSU Athletics

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Fort Hays State had eight players named to the 2015 All-MIAA Men’s Soccer Team, released on Tuesday (Nov. 10). The Tigers had four first team selections, headed by MIAA Player of the Year Mauricio Castorino.

Joining Castorino on the first team are Maurizio Costa, David Lucio and Killian Gorman. Second team selections go to Michael Yantz, Luan Silva and Anthony Hernandez. Kyle Markovits received an honorable mention selection.

Castorino, a sophomore forward from Asuncion, Paraguay, led the MIAA in points during the regular season with 26, accumulating nine goals and eight assists. He had a .231 shot percentage for the season, including a .538 shots on goal percentage. He had two game-winning goals as well. Castorino adds Player of the Year honors in the conference after earning MIAA Freshman of the Year honors last year.

Costa, a sophomore forward from Asuncion, Paraguay, tied Castorino for the team lead in goals with nine. He added one assist to finish the regular season with 19 points. He was a perfect 4-of-4 on penalty kicks and had three game-winning goals. He matched Castorino in shot percentage (.231) and had a .436 shots on goal percentage.

Lucio, a senior from Wichita, Kan., grabs the second All-MIAA honor of his career as a first-teamer this year in the midfield. Lucio finished the regular season with three goals and two assists for eight points. His 1,384 minutes ranks fourth on the team and he has two game-winning goals to his credit this year. He was a second-team selection last year.

Gorman, a sophomore from Manhattan, Kan., earned first-team honors at defender. Gorman went the distance throughout the season for the Tigers. He joins Yantz as the only two on the team to play every minute of the season. Gorman helped the Tigers allow 1.23 goals per match this season and post five shutouts this season.

Yantz, a sophomore from Warsaw, Ind., earned second team honors at goalkeeper. He played all 1,683 minutes this year and finished the regular season with a record of 12-5-1. He allowed 1.23 goals per match with 58 saves and a save percentage of .716. He had five shutouts for the season.

Silva, a sophomore from Highlands Ranch, Colo., earned second team honors at defender. Silva is a bit more of an offensive minded defender who finished with two goals and two assists in the regular season. He delivered one game-winning goal.

Hernandez, a junior from Oklahoma City, earned second team honors in the midfield. He ranked third on the team in goals with five and added two assists to rank third in points (12) as well. He posted a .552 shots on goal percentage.

Markovits, a senior from Austin, Texas, received an honorable mention nod in the midfield. He finished the year with one goal and one assist, while logging 1,122 minutes.

MIAA

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Fort Hays State’s Brian Ness has been named the MIAA Men’s Soccer Athlete of the Week. Ness provided the game-winning goal for the Tigers in a 1-0 win over Lindenwood, helping the FHSU complete the regular season at 12-5-1 overall. Ness took a through pass from Killian Gorman and beat a defender and then the keeper one-on-one to score the matchs lone goal in the 32nd minute. He was the only Tiger with a goal for the week as the Tigers went 1-1 in a pair of 1-0 matches.

The 5-10 sophomore forward is a native of Olathe, Kan.

FHSU Athletics

Fort Hays State Men’s Soccer will compete in the NCAA Tournament for the fourth consecutive year. The Tigers join Upper Iowa as the two teams from the Central Region selected to compete in the national tournament.

National Bracket

Once again, the Tigers head straight to the round of 16 in the tournament, where they will meet Upper Iowa in the Central Region Final on either November 19 or 20. The location of the match will be determined by the highest seed remaining from the first two rounds of the Midwest Regional this coming weekend (Nov. 14-15).

The Tigers were the Central Region champions in 2014 when they advanced past Northeastern State on penalty kicks. The Tigers fell in the Super Regional Final (national quarterfinals) to Quincy University by a score of 3-2, just one win shy of the national semifinals.

The Tigers enter the tournament at 12-5-1 overall. Upper Iowa is 13-3-1 overall. The teams split the regular season series with FHSU winning 3-2 in Fayette, Iowa, and Upper Iowa winning 1-0 in Hays.

FHSU Athletics

The latest edition of the NCAA Division II Super Region Rankings were released on Monday (Nov. 9). Fort Hays State is still on the outside looking in at the top 10 in Super Region 3, meaning the Tigers would need a win on Saturday against Central Missouri and several other results to break their way to have any hope of making the NCAA Division II Playoffs.

After the No. 9 team in last week’s rankings lost, there was some hope that the Tigers may jump into this week’s region rankings with a 7-3 record. Instead, the 7-3 team moving into the rankings this week at No. 9 is Southwest Minnesota State. Western Oregon held steady at No. 10 with a 7-2 record against Division II competition.

Central Missouri remains the first team out of the top seven at No. 8 again this week. The top seven teams will make the NCAA Division II Playoffs. Emporia State is No. 6 in the latest region rankings. If the rankings were to hold steady, the Fort Hays State vs. Central Missouri game in Hays is essentially a battle for the automatic berth in the Mineral Water Bowl. But teams from the No. 7 through No. 10 ranking all have games against opponents with records of .500 or better this week. There may be a slim sliver of hope the Tigers may still be alive for a playoff spot, but it would take a big shake up in the rankings for it to happen.

If the Tigers win on Saturday, they would most likely keep the Mules out of the playoffs and would have a 2-1 record against regionally ranked teams (which might strengthen their case for jumping in the region rankings), with their only loss to No. 1 Northwest Missouri State. The Bearcats are also the nation’s No. 1 ranked team this week. Fort Hays State’s win over a regionally ranked team was against Emporia State.

Below is the latest edition of the poll, with this week’s opponent (with record) out to the right.

Super Region 3 Rankings (Nov. 9)

Rank	School	In-Region Record	Division II Record	11/14 Opponent (Record)
1	Northwest Missouri State	10-0	10-0	Washburn (5-5)
2	Minnesota State-Mankato	9-1	9-1	Wayne State (Neb.) (4-6)
3	Humboldt State	8-0	8-1	Western Oregon (7-2)
4	Henderson State	9-1	9-1	Ouachita Baptist (7-3)
5	Augustana (S.D.)	8-2	8-2	Concordia-St. Paul (1-9)
6	Emporia State	8-2	8-2	Nebraska-Kearney (0-10)
7	Sioux Falls	8-2	8-2	Upper Iowa (6-4)
8	Central Missouri	8-2	8-2	Fort Hays State (7-3)
9	Southwest Minnesota State	7-3	7-3	Winona State (5-5)
10	Western Oregon	6-2	7-2	Humboldt State (8-1)

 

FHSU Athletics

NEW ORLEANS – Two Fort Hays State cross country runners earned 2015 Division II USTFCCCA All-Region Honors in Joplin, Mo. on Saturday. For one to receive the All-Region honor, they must finish within the top twenty-five at their regional championship. Cory Keehn and Shea Bonine both attained the honor with Keehn taking second place overall in the men’s race and Bonine taking 25th in the women’s race.

Keehn completed the 10K course in 29:51, just 12 seconds back of Missouri Southern’s Vincent Kiprop, who was the only runner to beat Keehn at the MIAA Championships as well. With the second-place finish, not only did Keehn receive All-Regiion honors, but he qualified for the NCAA Division II Cross Country Championships, also to be held in Joplin, Mo. This is the third time in Keehn’s career at Fort Hays State that he qualified for nationals.

Near the end of the 2015 season,  Bonine became the focal point of the Fort Hays State women’s cross country team when she had one of the best races of her career at the MIAA Championships by finishing sixth. By finishing 25th at the regional, she helped her team to a sixth place finish at the Central Regional meet and earned her first career all-region honor. Bonine ran a time of 21:59 on the 6K course.

The 2015 NCAA Division II Cross Country Championships will take place on Saturday, November 21.

FHSU Athletics

WACO, Texas – The Tiger football team continued its trend of bouncing in and out of the AFCA Division II Poll receiving votes section on Monday (Nov. 9). FHSU received three votes in last week’s edition, but dropped back out of the receiving votes section this week. FHSU dropped out of the receiving votes section following Week 6, jumped back in after Week 7, fell out after Week 8, jumped back in after Week 9, and now dipped back out again following Week 10 even with a win. They take on a No. 20 ranked Central Missouri squad on Saturday (Nov. 14) in Hays at 2:30 pm in the MIAA Television Network Game of the Week.

The MIAA has three schools referenced in the top 25. Northwest Missouri State is No. 1, Emporia State is No. 19, and Central Missouri is No. 20. The Tigers are 7-3 overall and have matched their win total from last season. FHSU will be looking for its first eight-win season since 1995 when it faces Central Missouri on Saturday.

A win could also vault the Tigers into their first postseason game since the same year. The Tigers were not in the most recent edition of the Super Region 3 Rankings, but they have been on the outside looking in and the No. 9 team in the region rankings lost Saturday. Central Missouri was No. 8 in the most recent rankings. The top seven teams are selected to the NCAA Playoffs.

Even if the Tigers come up short of a playoff selection, a win could possibly secure a Bowl Game bid. The highest finisher in the MIAA standings that does not make the playoffs gets an automatic selection to the Mineral Water Bowl in Excelsior Springs, Mo. A win would at least tie the Tigers for third place in the standings with Central Missouri, and possibly second pending on what happens with Emporia State on Saturday when it hosts Nebraska-Kearney. With a win, the Tigers would have the head-to-head advantage on Central Missouri in a two-way tie, and even Emporia State and UCM if there is a three-way tie for second. FHSU defeated a then No. 13 ranked Emporia State squad in Week 7 in Hays by a score of 27-24.

Below is the AFCA Division II Poll for November 9, 2015.

Rank	School (1st votes)	Record	Points	Previous Week
1.	Northwest Missouri St. (29)	10-0	796	2
2.	Ferris St. (Mich.) (2)	9-0	768	3
3.	Ashland (Ohio) (1)	10-0	712	5
4.	Colorado St.-Pueblo	9-1	711	4
5.	Shepherd (W.Va.)	9-0	672	6
6.	Minnesota St.	9-1	636	7
7.	West Georgia	9-1	568	1
8.	Henderson St. (Ark.)	9-1	566	9
9.	Slippery Rock (Pa.)	9-1	552	10
10.	Midwestern St. (Texas)	9-1	520	11
11.	Texas A&M-Commerce	8-2	449	12
12.	Humboldt St. (Calif.)	8-1	444	13
13.	Indianapolis (Ind.)	9-1	376	18
14.	Grand Valley St. (Mich.)	8-2	364	17
15.	North Alabama	7-2	319	19
16.	Charleston (W.Va.)	9-1	312	20
17.	Sioux Falls (S.D.)	8-2	274	8
18.	Valdosta St. (Ga.)	7-2	224	23
19.	Emporia St. (Kan.)	8-2	212	14
20.	Central Missouri	8-2	199	24
21.	Colorado Mesa	8-2	157	16
22.	Bowie St. (Md.)	9-1	148	25
23.	Assumption (Mass.)	9-1	116	NR
24.	Tuskegee (Ala.)	8-2	93	15
25.	Carson-Newman (Tenn.)	8-2	78	NR

Others Receiving Votes: Augustana (S.D.), 44; Catawba (N.C.), 36; Virginia Union, 20; Indiana (Pa.), 18; Florida Tech, 8; Michigan Tech, 4; North Greenville (S.C.), 2; McKendree (Ill.), 1; Western Oregon, 1.

FHSU Athletics

HAYS, Kan. – The 25th-ranked Fort Hays State men’s soccer team picked up a big win on Senior Day over Lindenwood Sunday. The Tigers were able to outlast the Lions in a 1-0 nail biter after drawing 0-0 with the Lions earlier in the season.

The first half was evenly matched despite the heavy south wind blowing against the Tigers. Both teams were able to get off five shots in the half and both seemed to have several other opportunities  before the half was over. The Tigers were able to make good on one of those opportunities, scoring the first and only goal of the game.

FHSU defender Killian Gorman launched a ball down the left side to find a streaking Brian Ness. Ness used his breakaway speed to pull away from the Lion defender to create a one-on-one with the goalkeeper who came charging out of his net. With the keeper approaching quickly, Ness slipped the ball past the diving keeper in the bottom right corner and across the goal line for his first goal of the season.

At halftime Fort Hays State thanked the senior members of the team with a nice ceremony involving their family members. Seniors Daniel Molina, Joe Albright, Kyle Markovits, David Lucio, Austin Clifton and Addision Pauler were all honored during this ceremony.

The second half produced a lot of action and tempers flared a bit as time was winding down. The Tigers were able to get off eight shots, and the Lions were able to produce five but neither team was able to find a way to get the ball in the goal thanks to some stout defense on both ends. Hard physical play throughout the entire match produced a yellow card for both teams and an ejection for Lindenwood, which required them to play the last 4:15 a man down.

Fort Hays State goalkeeper Michael Yantz was impressive in net all game stopping two shots he faced from the Lions and picked up his fifth shutout of the season. Andrew Hamerlinck took the tough luck loss for Lindenwood with three saves.

Fort Hays State will find out its NCAA Tournament fate on Monday evening (Nov. 9) at 5 pm Central Time during the NCAA Tournament Selection Show on NCAA.com. The Tigers were No. 1 in the region rankings entering the final week of play and they finished with a record of 12-5-1. Upper Iowa finished at 13-3-1 and Northeastern State was 12-6. Several formulas go into the selection, so with the closeness of the records, it’s hard to tell if any team is a lock for the two spots up for grabs in the tournament. FHSU went 1-1 in the final week with a loss to Upper Iowa and the win Sunday against Lindenwood.

FHSU Athletics

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – The much anticipated matchup between Fort Hays State and Central Missouri next Saturday has been selected by the MIAA Television Network as the Game of the Week. Postseason opportunities will be on the line as the Tigers host the Mules Saturday at 2:30 pm.

The game was originally scheduled for 2 pm, but has moved to 2:30 now that it will be televised. The game can be viewed on Eagle Cable Channels 204 and 601.

Looking at the standings a few weeks back, the Tigers and Mules have been on a collision course for a huge battle in the final week that has postseason implications for both teams. Central Missouri is currently tied for second in the MIAA with Emporia State at 8-2, while the Tigers are a game back at 7-3.

Fort Hays State will be looking for its first eight-win season since 1995 on Saturday. A win could also vault the Tigers into their first postseason game since the same year.

The Tigers were not in the most recent edition of the Super Region 3 Rankings, but they have been on the outside looking in and the No. 9 team in the region rankings lost Saturday. Find out Monday if the Tigers have cracked the region rankings. Central Missouri was No. 8 in the most recent poll. The top seven teams are selected to the NCAA Playoffs.

Even if the Tigers come up short of a playoff selection, a win could possibly secure a Bowl Game bid. The highest finisher in the MIAA standings that does not make the playoffs gets an automatic selection to the Mineral Water Bowl in Excelsior Springs, Mo. A win would at least tie the Tigers for third place in the standings, and possibly second pending on what happens with Emporia State on Saturday when it hosts Nebraska-Kearney.

Last year, Central Missouri was selected at-large for the Texarkana Bowl. The Tigers pulled even with the Mules for fourth in the MIAA standings last year by defeating UCM in the final week 45-17. Missouri Western also tied for fourth. The selection was not automatic like the Mineral Water Bowl. In fact, among the three teams to tie for fourth last year at 7-4, Central Missouri went 0-2. Missouri Western may have been the most deserving of the selection since it defeated FHSU and UCM, while the Tigers went 1-1 among the three-way tie. So, with that said, there is no guarantee of a bowl game outside of the team that gets the automatic selection to the Mineral Water Bowl.

A win Saturday should put the Tigers in great position for a postseason opportunity. A loss would most likely leave the Tigers with no guarantees.

JOPLIN, Mo. – Fort Hays State scored on three of their four possessions to start the second half, building a 25-point lead and hold on for a 42-31 win over Missouri Southern Saturday at Fred Hughes Stadium. The Tigers improve to 7-3, matching last season’s win total.

Chris Brown Postgame Interview

 

Alex Schmidtberger / Evan Jennings Postgame Interview

 

Game Highlights

 

Shaquille Cooper rushed for 99 yards and had five receptions for 68 yards including a 29-yard screen pass for a touchdown. Quarterback Treveon Albert ran for 71 yards and a touchdown while completing 13 of 23 passes for 257 yards and three touchdowns.

Doyin Jibowu returned a fumble eight-yards on Missouri Southern’s first offensive play to give the Tigers the early lead they would never relinquish. FHSU led 42-17 in the fourth quarter before MSSU scored a couple of late touchdowns for the final score.

FHSU Athletics

HAYS, Kan. – After falling in a five-set match with Missouri Western on Friday, the Tigers bounced back with a win in another five-set match with Northwest Missouri State. The Tigers took the first and third sets before winning the decisive set 15-10. FHSU moved to 19-12 overall, 8-8 in the MIAA and pulled within a half game of NWMSU in the conference standings.

The match was fairly even, FHSU with 72 kills and NWMSU with 66. The Bearcats edged the Tigers in hitting percentage .250 to .241 and the teams were dead even in digs with 76 each. Each team had higher hitting percentages than the other in each set they won.

FHSU built a big lead in the first set and eventually won 25-19. In the second, FHSU had a 20-18 lead but NWMSU ended the set on a 7-1 run to even the match. The Tigers used a late 6-3 burst after a 19-19 tie to take the third 25-22. The Bearcats scored three of the final four points of the fourth set to force the decisive set with a 25-23 win. FHSU jumped out to a 5-0 lead in the fifth, which included a pair of service aces by Mallory Flagor. The Bearcats never caught the Tigers from that point as the Tigers won the final set by five.

Crystal Whitten led the Tigers with 20 kills and she added 19 digs for a double-double. Rebekah Spainhour had 15 kills, while adding a team-best five blocks. Flagor also had a double-double with 14 kills and 18 digs. Megan Anderson also reached double figures in kills with 11 and Sydney Dixon had nine with four blocks. Hannah Wagy matched her assist total from Friday night with 61. Ari Jacobson led the Tigers in digs with 23.

Maddy Bruder led the Bearcats in kills with 14, while Jackie Becker and Sofia Schleppenbach each had 11. Bruder finished with a double-double, adding 13 digs. Jordan Trimble and Megan Stilmock split setting duties, Trimble with 33 assists and Stilmock with 20. Aarika Wittenburg led NWMSU in digs with 22.

The Tigers close out the regular season schedule next weekend at home with matches against Missouri Southern and Southwest Baptist.

FHSU Athletics

JOPLIN, Mo. – Fort Hays State’s Cory Keehn finished in second place individually at the NCAA Central Regional Cross Country Championships on Saturday. Keehn and Vincent Kiprop of Missouri Southern repeated their performances from the MIAA Championships as Kiprop was the individual champion and Keehn the runner-up on the 10K course.

Keehn covered the 10K course in 29:51, just 12 seconds back of Kiprop who won the race with a time of 29:39. They were the only two runners in the field to run sub-30 minutes.

Jacob Thomas was the next finisher for the Tigers in 38th with a time of 31:51. Troy Wineinger was 51st with a time of 32:03. Israel Baro took 59th in 32:12 and Seth Parres rounded out the scoring for FHSU in 67th at 32:24.

The Tigers took eighth as a team with 217 points and finished fourth out of the MIAA squads competing. Augustana won the team title with 82 points, the only team inside 100 points. East Central was second with 104 and Nebraska-Kearney was third with 119.