For the third time this season, Fort Hays State’s C.J. Napier has been named the MIAA Wrestler of the Week. Napier was the champion of the 141-pound bracket at the Kansas Cup on Sunday (Jan. 27) in Wichita, Kan. Napier was also the wrestler of the week for January 14 and November 19.

Napier went 4-0 in his bracket, winning all of his matches by decisions of four points or less. In the quarterfinals, he defeated Terrance Moore of Neosho Community College, the No. 10 ranked wrestler in the NJCAA, by a 3-2 margin. In the bracket’s final he earned a 5-3 decision over Tyler Davis of Labette Community College, the No. 5 ranked wrestler in the NJCAA. As the No. 4 ranked wrestler in Division II, he improved his overall record to 25-4 on the season. Napier is native of Columbus, Kan. and transfered to FHSU prior to his sophomore year from the University of Nebraska.

– FHSU Sports Information –

Fort Hays State wrestling finished third at the fourth-annual Kansas Cup on Sunday (Jan. 27) in Wichita, Kan. at Newman University. C.J. Napier (141 pounds) and Derek Koehn (157 pounds) were individual champions. FHSU finished with 102 team points, behind champion Labette Community College with 119.5 and Baker University with 106.

The team standings are still under review as Fort Hays State was shorted points on the final printed results. Napier was entered in the results as the runner-up at 141 pounds.

The Tigers were down a wrestler in the event as they did not have anyone at 125 pounds. Also, Tanner Kriss, who is nationally ranked at 197 pounds, did not compete in the event. Fort Hays State had three wrestlers reach the finals, which included Derek Koehn (157), C.J. Napier (141), and Noah Killip (149).

Koehn defeated Colby Crank of Bethany College in the finals at 157 pounds with a fall in 1:22. He also had a close 3-2 decision in the semifinals and a fall in the quarterfinals to reach the championship. Napier defeated Tyler Davis of Labette Community College in the finals at 141 pounds by a 5-3 decision. He had close battles throughout the afternoon, winning his opening round match by two, his quarterfinal match by one, and the semifinal by four. Killip had a pair of tight wins to reach the finals with a 5-3 win in the quarters and a 2-1 win over Nick Haugen of Baker in the semis. He was pinned in the final by Spencer Rutherford of Labette Community College in 5:54.

Fort Hays State had three third-place finishers, which included Symon Seaton (133), Sam Thoman (165) and Zack Grimes (184). Seaton was pinned in his first match of the day in the quarterfinals, but picked up a major decision and one-point decision in the consolation bracket before taking third by default. Thoman had a 6-0 shutout win in his first match of the day to reach the semifinals, but lost 9-5. He then had a convincing major decision win in the consolation bracket before posting an 8-3 win over Nathan Sommer of Baker in the third-place match. Grimes took a similar path as Thoman, winning his first match of the day 10-5 to reach the semis, but then lost 12-7. In the consolation side, he had a 6-4 decision and then a 12-2 major decision over Jarid Price of Baker for third.

John Close finished fourth at heavyweight. He reached the semifinals with a 3-0 win in the quarterfinals before getting shutout by eventual champion Brandon Gebhardt of Baker. He posted a fall in 1:33 over Pedro Garcia of Colby Community College, but then lost in the third-place match 3-1 to Lorenzo Serna of Newman. Travis Budke was the only other placer for the Tigers, finishing fifth at 174 pounds.

The Tigers gear up for two duals at home this coming week, hosting Lindenwood on Friday (Feb. 1) and Truman on Sunday (Feb. 3).

Fort Hays State baseball was picked to fifth in the MIAA Baseball Preseason Coaches Poll, released on Wednesday, January 23. The MIAA expands to 15 teams this year in baseball as each member institution has the sport. Fort Hays State finished sixth in the regular season last year and made the MIAA Tournament Championship Game in just Steve Johnson’s second year as head coach.

Entering his third year at the helm, Steve Johnson has compiled an overall record of 57-47, finishing five games over .500 in each of his first two seasons. The Tigers finished 29-24 last year with a 20-19 MIAA mark.

Picked atop the poll once again is three-time defending conference champion Central Missouri, which starts the year ranked fourth in the nation. Missouri Western and Emporia State, which are each in the Top 40 of the ABCA Division II poll, are picked behind UCM in second and third respectively. Conference newcomer Central Oklahoma is picked fourth after going 31-17 in 2012. Missouri Southern and Washburn, which both finished ahead of the Tigers in the MIAA regular season standings last year, are picked behind the Tigers in sixth and seventh respectively.

Headlining the returners to the 2013 squad is senior Ryan Busboom, an All-America First Team selection by the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association and Daktronics and the Daktronics South Central Region Player of the Year in 2012. Busboom had a monster year offensively, hitting .386 with 17 doubles, 16 home runs, 66 RBI and 50 runs scored, while slugging .718. Busboom, who started every game last year in the outfield, is likely to move back to the infield at third base this year with the depth the Tigers have in the outfield. Catchers Jay Sanders and Shane Wade, and second baseman Chris Santoscoy, who were a regular part of the lineup in 2012, also return to the squad this year as seniors.

FHSU returns two from its 2012 starting rotation on the mound in seniors Alex Ellison and Jesse Hart. Kyle Leroy, Sam Thornton, Nathan Zimmerman, and Tayler Davis also return after seeing significant action on the mound in 2012.

Below is the 2013 MIAA Baseball Preseason Coaches Poll…

2013 MIAA Baseball Preseason Coaches Poll
1. Central Missouri (14) 196
2. Missouri Western (1) 175
3. Emporia State 160
4. Central Oklahoma 152
5. Fort Hays State 136
6. Missouri Southern 135
7. Washburn 118
8. Lindenwood 108
9. Pittsburg State 91
10. Northwest Missouri 75
11. Northeastern State 64
12. Nebraska-Kearney 62
13. Southwest Baptist 43
14. Truman 41
15. Lincoln 19

-FHSU Sports Information-