FHSU Athletics

ATLANTA, Ga. – Fort Hays State women’s basketball earned a spot on the WBCA Academic Top 25 Team Honor Roll, released by the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association. The WBCA Academic Top 25 presented by AT&T annually recognizes NCAA Division I, II and III; NAIA; and junior/community college women’s basketball teams across the nation that carry the highest combined grade point average (GPA) inclusive of all student-athletes on their rosters for the entire season.

Fort Hays State ranked 23rd in the top 25 schools, carrying a team GPA of 3.536. FHSU was one of just seven schools in the top 25 to be selected to the NCAA Tournament, showing they are among the best both on the floor and in the classroom.

The Tigers owned the top GPA for women’s basketball in the MIAA to go along with their conference regular season championship they earned with an 18-1 record in conference play. FHSU went on to finish the season at 30-4 overall, hosting the NCAA Central Regional in Hays. The historic season came to a close in the Central Regional Final, but the season saw the Tigers reach No. 2 in the WBCA Top 25 poll and No. 1 by a couple other ranking services during the regular season. Northeastern State, just behind FHSU at No. 24, was the only other MIAA school in the Academic Top 25.

FHSU ranked No. 8 in the final WBCA poll of the season, the highest final ranking on the court of the seven schools that made the NCAA Tournament listed in the Academic Top 25. Drury (No. 17 in the final poll and No. 5 on the Academic Top 25) and Ashland (No. 22 in the final poll and No. 7 on the Academic Top 25) were the only other schools among those seven to finish the year in the final WBCA Top 25 poll. FHSU was the only school in the Academic Top 25 to reach 30 wins last year.

Ohio Dominican was the nation’s top team academically with a 3.842, the highest of all NCAA levels (I, II, and III), NAIA, and junior colleges. FHSU would have ranked 10th among the highest grade point averages in NCAA Division I, 11th among NCAA Division III, or 11th among NAIA. NCAA Division II showed it was the strongest academically as all of its Top 25 ranks inside the top 15 of Division I, inside the top 16 of Division III, and inside the top 12 of NAIA.

Eight of Fort Hays State’s players had a cumulative GPA of 3.7 or higher and six had a GPA of 3.8 or higher. Senior Keriann Shaw led the way by finishing her collegiate eligibility with a perfect 4.0, while Taylor Menke posted a perfect 4.0 in her first year at FHSU. Three of Fort Hays State’s four all-conference players had a 3.8 or higher, which included Shaw, All-American  Kate Lehman (3.85), and Beth Bohuslavsky (3.86). Jill Faxon, the other all-conference selection for FHSU, was not far behind at 3.65. Paige Lunsford, member of the starting five on the floor, sports a near-perfect 3.96 GPA, while Elle Stein gave the team a boost at 3.8 in her first year removed from junior college. Christine Russell (3.78) and Sarah Pimentel (3.75) were also among those above a 3.7.

This is the fifth time in Tony Hobson’s seven years as head coach at Fort Hays State that the women’s basketball team earned the WBCA Academic Top 25 honor. The team ranked 14th in 2009-10, 12th in 2010-11, 4th in 2011-12, and 14th in 2012-13. FHSU was just outside the top 25 last year, but jumped back in this year as NCAA Division II has shown much more academic strength in women’s basketball the past two years.

FHSU Athletics

Fort Hays State women’s and men’s basketball will each play over half of their schedules at home during the 2015-16 season. The FHSU women will play 15 of their 28 games at home this year, while the men will play 17 of their 28 contests inside Gross Memorial Coliseum.

2015-16 FHSU Men’s Basketball Schedule

2015-16 FHSU Women’s Basketball Schedule

The FHSU men will not play a regular season game outside of Gross Memorial Coliseum until December 17 as they will be at home throughout the duration of the Fall Semester. The Tigers play their first nine games at home, starting with a pair of games against Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) opponents Southwest Minnesota State and Sioux Falls on November 14-15. FHSU is coming off a 16-13 record in 2014-15, though it had great success at home once again with a 13-3 mark at the coliseum last year.

Coming off a 30-4 overall record in 2014-15 (the program’s most successful season in its NCAA Division II history), the FHSU women open the year with a pair of games against NSIC opponents in St. Joseph, Mo. Following those games, they return to Hays to start a seven-game home stand to parallel the men’s schedule through the end of the Fall Semester. The home opener for the women will be against another NSIC opponent, St. Cloud State, on November 20, followed by a contest with Regis University on November 21.

Conference play for both squads opens with in-state rivals Washburn and Emporia State. The Ichabods come to Hays on December 2 to kick off the 22-game conference schedule, then the Hornets come to town three days later on December 5. FHSU meets WU and ESU just once during the regular season in a schedule where the Tigers play nine conference schools twice and four just once. Washburn and Emporia State join Missouri Western and Northwest Missouri State as the schools FHSU will see just once. Games against Nebraska-Kearney on December 12 complete a run of three straight home dates against rival schools to open conference play at the coliseum.

The Tigers ring in a new year with a pair of home games against Pittsburg State and Missouri Southern on January 2 and 4. Later in the month, FHSU hosts Northeastern State on the 14th and Central Oklahoma on the 16th.

The Tigers play four games in February at home. Central Missouri comes to Hays on the 4th and Southwest Baptist follows on the 6th. The Tigers host Lindenwood on the 18th and close out the home schedule on the 20th against Lincoln.

The Tiger men take on in-state Division I schools Kansas State and Kansas in exhibition play on the road, November 6 and 10. Game times have not been released for the contests in Manhattan and Lawrence, but see the Tigers challenge a pair of Big 12 teams in a span of five days in early November before getting the regular season underway in Hays.

There is a total of 19 home dates between the women’s and men’s schedules, with 13 of the dates being doubleheaders.

FHSU Athletics

Fort Hays State first-year men’s golf coach Sean Dreiling has announced the signing of eight student-athletes for the upcoming 2015-16 season. Five come to the program as true freshmen, while three are transferring from Kansas junior colleges. The individuals that committed to the program are Cash Hobson, Mac Megaffin, Isaiah Grover, Jake Weller, Marshal Hutchins, Landon Fox, Koby Beougher and Lane Pauls.

Hobson, Megaffin, Grover, Weller, and Hutchins are all incoming freshmen in 2015-16. Hobson and Megaffin are both local products from Hays. Hobson was a four-time state qualifier at Hays High School, while Megaffin was a three-time state qualifier at Thomas More Prep-Marian High School. Grover, a native of Cheney, Kan., is also a three-time state qualifier coming to the program from Cheney High School. Weller and Hutchins are each two-time state qualifiers. Weller is from Topeka, Kan., coming from Topeka Seaman High School, while Hutchins is from Scott City, Kan., where he competed at Scott Community High School.

Fox, Beougher, and Pauls are all junior transfers, two from Barton (Kan.) Community College and one from Kansas City (Kan.) Community College. Fox, native of Winfield, Kan., had a standout career at Barton where he was a two-time national qualifier and an all-conference first team selection in 2015. Beougher also played at Barton for two years and was a member of Barton’s team that qualified for nationals during his freshman year of 2013-14. Prior to that, he was the individual state champion in Kansas Class 1A as a senior at Stockton High School in Stockton, Kan. Pauls, a native of Newton, Kan., played at KCKCC for two years and was an all-conference second team selection his freshman year.

Fox and Pauls both qualified for this year’s Kansas Amateur, which will be played July 20-26 at the Wichita Country Club in Wichita, Kan. Fox was the individual champion at one of the seven qualifying sites, topping a field of 42 golfers at Sand Creek Station Golf Course in Newton, Kan., with a round of 2-under par. Pauls was close behind, finishing in fourth at even par. A total of 128 golfers will participate in the Kansas Amateur this year.

Sean Dreiling enters his first year as head coach of the men’s golf program. Dreiling is also an assistant coach for the men’s basketball team at FHSU, entering his fourth year in that role in 2015-16.

FHSU Athletics

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. – Fort Hays State Women’s Basketball ranked second nationally in attendance for the 2014-15 season as the NCAA released its Division II basketball attendance numbers on Monday. FHSU averaged 2,289 fans per contest, the best among MIAA schools.

The Tigers moved up one spot in the national attendance figures in each of the last two years. After ranking fourth nationally in attendance in 2012-13, FHSU moved up to third in 2013-14 and now second in 2014-15. FHSU saw a jump of 438 fans per game in 2014-15 after averaging 1,851 the previous season.

That jump came in Fort Hays State’s most successful NCAA Division II season. The program reached new heights in 2014-15, posting a record of 30-4 (first-ever 30-win season in the program’s NCAA Division II history) and earning the No. 1 seed and right to host the NCAA Central Regional at Gross Memorial Coliseum in Hays. The Tigers won the MIAA Regular Season Championship (its first since joining the conference in 2006-07) and moved all the way up to No. 2 in the WBCA Division II National Poll. FHSU was even considered No. 1 in the nation by a couple other ranking sources, though the WBCA is recognized as the official Division II poll.

The state of Kansas had all four of its schools in the MIAA rank in the top 10 nationally for attendance. After FHSU at No. 2, Emporia State ranked third at 2,110 per game. Washburn was seventh at 1,652 per game and Pittsburg State was eighth at 1,596 per game. Not only were all four schools high on the attendance chart, but all four spent time in the top 10 of the national poll at some point in 2014-15. FHSU was in the top 10 of the national rankings in each of the last eight polls of the season.

Looking at the six regular season games FHSU played against its in-state conference rivals, an average of 3,238 fans attended those contests. An average of 4,021 fans witnessed the regular season home games at Gross Memorial Coliseum against Emporia State, Washburn, and Pittsburg State. A total of 4,955 fans witnessed the NCAA Central Regional Final game against Emporia State in Hays. The coliseum truly provided an awesome atmosphere for Fort Hays State’s storybook season.

The only school to draw more at home on average in 2014-15 was Northern State (S.D.) of the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference at 2,758 per game. Northern State was a participant in the NCAA Central Regional at Gross Memorial Coliseum, but lost in the opening round to Pittsburg State.

With four teams in the top 10, the MIAA led the nation in attendance once again as a conference, averaging 1,172 fans per game. It was the only conference to average 1,000 or more fans per game. The Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference, also in the Central Region, was second at 907 fans per game.

Below is a link to the NCAA Division II top 10 women’s attendance figures for the 2014-15 season.

2014-15 NCAA Division II Attendance Figures

FHSU Athletics

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. – Fort Hays State Men’s Basketball ranked third nationally in attendance for the second straight year as the official 2014-15 NCAA Division II basketball attendance numbers were released on Monday. FHSU averaged 2,656 fans per contest in 2014-15, the best among MIAA schools.

Fort Hays State heads six MIAA schools ranked in the top 15 of NCAA Division II and nine in the top 30. Central Missouri was right behind FHSU, ranked fourth at 2,647 fans per game. Nebraska-Kearney was also among the top 10 at 2,018 per game, while Missouri Southern (13th), Washburn (14th), and Emporia State (15th) were all in the top 15. The top two schools in attendance for 2014-15 are members of the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference, Northern State on top at 3,402 per game and Augustana (S.D.) second at 2,697 per game.

The large crowds at Gross Memorial Coliseum once again created a home-court advantage helping the Tigers to a 13-3 record on their floor. The coliseum is annually one of the toughest venues on opponents as FHSU has a record of 323-51 since joining NCAA Division II, winning 86.4 percent of its games. The overall record for FHSU at the coliseum of 557-104 is equally as impressive, winning 84.3 percent of its games. The Tigers have reached at least 10 home wins in 37 of 42 seasons in the coliseum. FHSU has went undefeated at home four times in that span.

The Tigers won at least 12 games at home for the eighth-consecutive year, playing an average of 15 contests per year at home in that run. In the school’s 24-year NCAA Division II history, the Tigers have produced at least 11 wins at home in all but two seasons.

The Tigers helped the MIAA lead the nation once again in attendance as a conference. The average attendance at MIAA schools in 2014-15 was 1,514. The Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference, also in the Central Region, was second at 1,169 fans per game.

Below is a link to the NCAA Division II top 30 attendance figures for the 2014-15 season.

2014-15 NCAA Division II Attendance Figures

FHSU Athletics

Fort Hays State’s Kate Lehman was named the female recipient of the Ken B. Jones Award from the MIAA on Wednesday evening in Kansas City, Mo. The Ken B. Jones Award recognizes the conference’s Student Athlete of the Year award for both a male and female, which combines the individual’s athletic, academic, and service accomplishments.

Lehman is the first-ever recipient of the award from Fort Hays State, male or female, since FHSU joined the MIAA in 2006. Lehman adds this honor to her long list of accomplishments in 2014-15, a year that saw her earn All-America First Team honors from four organizations and the National Player of the Year from BennettRank.com. She was both the MIAA Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year. She earned the conference’s top defensive honor and All-MIAA First Team honors for three consecutive years and was named to the All-Defensive Team all four years.

RELATED: Lehman will teach, coach at area high school next year.

It was a historic year for the Ken B. Jones winners. Not only did Lehman become the first recipient of the award for Fort Hays State, male winner Chris Watson became Central Oklahoma’s first recipient, an undefeated national champion in wrestling.

Not only did Lehman get the job done on the court as one of the nation’s top players, she also excelled in the classroom throughout her time at Fort Hays State, graduating with a 3.85 GPA as an Elementary Education major. She was named to the CoSIDA Academic All-America First Team in 2015.

Lehman had an impressive list of service accomplishments at Fort Hays State, serving as an intern in multiple educational fields and putting a lot of service hours in at Sternberg Museum and with the St. Jude’s “Up Til Dawn” group at FHSU. She also spent time as a substitute teacher, a reading disabilities tutor, and participated in several service projects with the women’s basketball team.

One of the most impressive facets of Lehman helping the FHSU women’s basketball team to its most successful season in its NCAA Division II history was the fact she spent the entire second half of the season as a first grade student teacher at Lincoln Elementary. During the run of the season’s most critical games from January through March, Lehman was teaching daily from 8 am-4pm before coming to practice and games. Yet she still produced on the highest level, helping the Tigers to an MIAA Regular Season Championship, the No. 1 seed in the Central Region, and the Central Regional Final.

Lehman reached a distinction no other NCAA Division II women’s basketball player in history had ever accomplished in 2015. She was the first ever at the level to have at least 1,000 points, 1,000 rebounds, and 500 blocked shots in a career. Although several players have attained the 1,000 – 1,000 mark in points and rebounds, only one player had ever passed the 500 blocked shot mark in Division II history. With Lehman well past the 1,000 mark in points and rebounds, she finally reached 500 blocked shots in a 59-53 MIAA Tournament Semifinal win over Central Missouri. She went on to finish with 1,917 points, 1,109 rebounds, and 515 blocks in her career.

All of Lehman’s accolades throughout the 2014-15 season caught the attention of the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame in Knoxville, Tenn. Her jersey will now hang in the Hall of Fame’s “Ring of Honor” for a full year in recognition of those accomplishments. The Ken B. Jones Award is now another impressive honor to add to her ever-growing list of accomplishments.

FHSU Athletics

For the first time, the United States Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) has expanded the amount of its All-America recipients in Division II. An All-America Second Team has been created for athletes placing ninth through 12th at the national meet. Earning second team honors for the outdoor season were Megan Honas and Danielle Berry while Cory Keehn earned the honor in two events for the indoor season.

This is the first year that the USTFCCCA has created an All-America Second Team. All-America honors traditionally have gone to the top eight finishers at the national indoor and outdoor championships. This outdoor season, Estefania Lopez (second) and Madison Wolf (fourth) earned first team in javelin, while Brady Tien (sixth) earned first team in pole vault.

Honas finished ninth in the javelin at the outdoor championships. Her throw of 152-feet, 10-inches was a personal best. Her performance gives the Tigers three All-Americans in the women’s javelin for 2015. Danielle Berry finished 11th in the high jump at the outdoor championships, clearing a height of 5-feet, 5-inches.

Earlier this year, Cory Keehn turned in two performances at the national indoor meet good for All-America Second Team status. He finished ninth in the 3,000 meters and 11th in the 5,000 meters.

Fort Hays State had a total of seven All-America performances indoor and outdoor seasons combined in 2015.

FHSU Athletics

Fort Hays State had three athletes earn All-America status on Saturday (May 23) at the NCAA Division II Outdoor Track and Field Championships in Allendale, Mich. Estefania Lopez and Madison Wolf finished second and fourth respectively in the women’s javelin, while Brady Tien took sixth in the men’s pole vault.

On her first attempt, Lopez broke the NCAA Championship site record with a throw of 170-feet, 8-inches. It passed the mark of 169-feet, 9-inches set by Linda Brivule of Abilene Christian in 2008. However, the record would not stand for long when Allison Updike of Azusa Pacific began her day as a member of the second flight of throwers. Updike posted a new record on her first attempt at 171-feet, 5-inches.

Madison Wolf took just one attempt to throw 161-feet, 4-inches and sit in third after the first flight of competition. No other throwers besides Updike in the second flight would top that effort in their first three attempts, leaving her in fourth going into the finals, where the field was reduced to nine throwers.

Megan Honas punched her ticket into the final round of throwers by hitting a personal best of 152-feet, 10-inches on her second attempt of the day. However, she would foul her next three throws and couldn’t top the mark on her sixth and final attempt of the day, leaving her just shy of All-America status in ninth. Just a sophomore, Honas continued to get stronger and stronger as the season progressed and she gave the Tigers three finishers in the Top 10 at nationals.

Gritting through a nagging injury, Wolf took one more attempt on the day in the finals and threw 162-feet, 6-inches, a new personal best to secure fourth place. Also just a sophomore, it was a two-place improvement for Wolf after finishing sixth at the NCAA Championships last year as a true freshman.

Lopez reached 170 feet one more time on her fourth attempt of the day, but could not top Updike for first place. Updike then left no doubt with an unbelievable toss of 181-feet, 10-inches to obliterate the NCAA Championship site record by over 12 feet. Lopez’s effort of 170-feet, 8-inches broke her own FHSU record in the new model javelin, set earlier this season. By finishing second, Lopez gave FHSU its third national runner-up in the event over the last four years (two times by Makayla McPhail – 2012 & 2013).

Brady Tien had a great day at the championships as well, securing All-America status by clearing 16-feet, 10.75-inches in the pole vault. He finished alone in sixth in the standings. He avoided elimination by clearing 16-feet, 2.75-inches on his third and final attempt at the height, then went on to clear 16-feet, 6.75-inches and 16-feet, 10.75-inches on his second attempts at each height. Tien could not clear 17-feet, 2.75-inches, which would have broken his school record, but he had already secured All-American status after three of the nine competitors missed at 16-feet, 10.75-inches. Tien grabbed the second All-America honor of his career at FHSU as he also finished sixth nationally in the 2014 indoor season.

Fort Hays State had three other athletes compete at the championships. On Thursday evening, Cory Keehn finished 17th in the men’s 10,000 meter run with a time of 31:10.51. On Friday, Danielle Berry finished 11th in the women’s high jump, clearing a height of 5-feet, 5-inches. On Saturday, Brenner Wells threw 192-feet, 1-inch in the men’s javelin to finish 17th.

Fort Hays State’s Kevin Czarnecki was named to the 2015 Daktronics All-America Third Team on Friday (May 22). Czarnecki had a tremendous senior season for the Tigers, earning the honor at utility/non-pitcher. The Daktronics All-America Team is voted on by sports information directors throughout NCAA Division II. He is the first All-America selection for Tiger Baseball since the 2012 season.

2015 Daktronics All-America Baseball Team

Czarnecki led the Tigers with a .415 batting average, 17 doubles, 71 hits, 53 runs scored, and an on-base percentage of .495. Czarnecki recorded 30 extra-base hits, adding 12 home runs and a triple to his team-best 17 doubles. Czarnecki finished the season on an impressive 21-game hitting streak and 37-game streak of reaching base. He also led the team in multi-hit games with 27. Czarnecki started at three different positions in 2015, 21 times at first base, 15 times at designated hitter, and 11 times at third base.

Czarnecki finished his career at FHSU with a .384 batting average, 126 hits, 25 doubles, 20 home runs, and 84 RBI. He is the first All-America selection for FHSU since Ryan Busboom was named to the All-America First Team by Daktronics and the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association.

FHSU Athletics

The Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame in Knoxville, Tenn., announced that it will display Kate Lehman’s Fort Hays State jersey (No. 40) in its “Ring of Honor” for her accomplishments as a senior during the 2014-15 season.

Over 100 jerseys, which includes high school and college All-Americans, from the 2013-14 season are currently on display in an exhibit that changes annually. The Hall of Fame will borrow Lehman’s jersey for a year to display in honor of her numerous individual achievements for 2014-15. Lehman was the BennettRank.com Division II Player of the Year, the MIAA Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year, the Daktronics Central Region Most Outstanding Player, and an All-America First Team selection by four organizations (WBCA, Daktronics, Division II Bulletin, and BennettRank.com).

Lehman averaged 19.3 points, 9.9 rebounds, and 4.2 blocked shots per game in 2014-15, helping the Tigers to a 30-4 record overall, the MIAA Regular Season Championship, and an appearance in the Central Regional Finals of the NCAA Tournament. She averaged 15.8 points, 9.2 rebounds, and 4.3 blocked shots per game in her four-year career at FHSU.