Women vs. Rockhurst: Tipoff at 2pm

Fort Hays State opens a three-game homestand on Saturday (Dec. 16) when it hosts Kansas Wesleyan at Gross Memorial Coliseum. The Tigers are 7-3 overall, coming off a 1-1 road swing in MIAA play. FHSU is 7-3 overall, while Kansas Wesleyan enters at 7-5.

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This is the first meeting with Kansas Wesleyan in 10 years. The teams last met during the 2007-08 season when the Tigers claimed a 78-61 win in Hays. This is the 88th meeting all-time between the schools and FHSU has won the last 17 games, holding a 56-31 lead in series history. Kansas Wesleyan last victory over FHSU was back in the 1950-51 season.

Though this is a non-conference contest, FHSU is out to a 3-1 start in MIAA play. Last week the Tigers took their first conference loss of the season at Washburn on Wednesday by a score of 69-58, but then turned around Saturday and picked up a road win at Emporia State by the same score. All of Fort Hays State’s seven wins occurred at either Gross Memorial Coliseum, or White Auditorium in Emporia. FHSU opened the year with a neutral site win over Southwest Minnesota State in White Auditorium. The Tigers play their final three games of December at home, where they are 5-0 so far this year.

The Tigers continue to lead the MIAA in assists, averaging 17.1 per game. Kyler Kinnamon leads that charge at point guard, dishing out 5.1 per game. He has at least three helpers in every game this year with eight as his season high. He ranks third in the MIAA in assists per game, while also ranking second in steals per game (2.2).

Hadley Gillum is coming off his third double-double of the season with 21 points and 12 rebounds in the win at Emporia State this past Saturday. He leads the team at 18.2 points and 7.3 rebounds per game, which rank sixth and seventh in the MIAA respectively. Brady Werth is the only other Tiger averaging double figures in scoring right now at 11.1 points per game. In conference play, Gillum is the only Tiger averaging double figures at 22.8 points per game.

Jordan McNelly leads Kansas Wesleyan in scoring at 16.3 points per game, followed by Jamon Fulton at 11.3 per game. The Coyotes had a three-game win streak snapped on Tuesday at the hands of Friends University. KWU is 5-3 in its conference (KCAC) so far this season.

The Fort Hays State women’s basketball team routinely makes the trip to Kansas City, Mo. in March for the MIAA Tournament, but the Tigers will make their first regular season trip to KC in almost 13 years Saturday (Dec. 16) when they face off with Rockhurst University. First tip with the Hawks is set for 2 p.m. inside Mason-Halpin Field House.

*Due to the men’s home game starting at 4 p.m., Saturday’s contest will air on 94.3 KAYS in Hays.* Listen

The Tigers head into the weekend 8-2 on the season, while the Hawks are 6-3 so far this year. Fort Hays State will be looking for its second win in four days after defeating Tabor on Wednesday, 90-44, while the Hawks will return to the court for the first time in nine days after losing to Illinois-Springfield last Thursday, 63-38.

Despite the close proximity in relation to other Division II programs, Fort Hays State has only played Rockhurst six times before Saturday. The Tigers hold a 5-1 advantage in the series, including five-straight wins and a 2-1 edge in Kansas City. This is the first time that head coach Tony Hobson has faced off with the Hawks. The teams last played in 2006, with the Tigers pulling out a 79-77 home victory thanks to a season-high 27 points from Ashlee Gustin (1/24/06).

The Tigers have taken care of business in non-conference play in recent history, winning their last 22 regular season out of league games and 55 of their last 56. Coach Hobson is 66-5 in regular season non-conference contests at FHSU.

Limiting turnovers has been essential for the Tigers this season, with FHSU making 15 or fewer turnovers in all seven wins and making 16 or more miscues in both losses so far this year.

Rockhurst is coming off an 18-10 season a year ago, the most wins since the progam made the jump to the NCAA Division II in 1998-99. The Hawks have played a trio of MIAA opponents this season, defeating Northwest Missouri State (62-47) while losing to Washburn (64-62) and Missouri Western (52-39). Rockhurst is 5-0 at home this season. The Hawks average 68 points per game while limiting opponents to 59.4 points per contest. They are strong on the glass, ranking second in the GLVC with 41.7 rebounds per night. Madeline Ronshausen leads the team and ranks seventh in the GLVC with 15.2 points each night. Jillian Myers affect the game in many ways, leading the team with 4.6 assists, 1.7 blocks and 2.2 steals per game while ranking second with 11.7 points per contest and sitting third with 5.1 rebounds per outing.

Fort Hays State senior defensive lineman Nathan Shepherd received All-America Second Team honors from the Associated Press for 2017, landing on the organization’s Division II All-America Team. This is Shepherd’s second All-America selection this year after receiving first-team honors from the AFCA.

Shepherd was the MIAA Defensive Player of the Year, making it two straight years a player from FHSU earned the distinction. He helped FHSU to its first-ever MIAA Championship as the Tigers posted a perfect 11-0 record in regular season play. Shepherd finished the year with 38 tackles, 12.5 tackles for loss, and four sacks, but constantly disrupted offenses by drawing double and triple teams on the line.

In his three years at Fort Hays State, Shepherd amassed 168 tackles, 27 tackles for loss, and 10 sacks. He is an All-America selection for the second straight year after earning an honorable mention nod from the Don Hansen Football Committee last year. He is a three-time All-MIAA selection, earning first team this year, second team in 2016, and third team in 2015.

Shepherd will compete in two prestigious all-star games in January. He will participate in the NFLPA Collegiate Bowl, played at the historic Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California, on January 20. That game will air nationally on Fox Sports 1. A week later on January 27, he will participate in the Reese’s Senior Bowl, held in Mobile, Alabama. That game will air on NFL Network.

FIRST TEAM
OFFENSE
Quarterback — Luis Perez, senior, Texas A&M-Commerce.
Running backs — Marc Jones, senior, Gannon; Cameron Mayberry, sophomore, Colorado School of Mines.
Linemen — Alex Cappa, senior, Humboldt State; Lavonte Hights, senior, Shepherd; Dominic Giunta, senior, Ashland; Harley Vaughan, senior, West Georgia; Gavin De Los Santos, senior, Harding.
Tight end — D.J. Cornish, sophomore, Shepherd.
Receivers — J.T. Luper, senior, Central Oklahoma; Weston Carr, sophomore, Azusa Pacific.
All-purpose player — Devontae Jackson, junior, West Georgia.
Kicker — Casey Bednarski, junior, Minnesota State.

DEFENSE
Linemen — Marcus Martin, senior, Slippery Rock; Bo Banner, senior, Central Washington; Adonis Davis, junior, Florida Tech; Myles Humphrey, senior, Shepherd.
Linebacker — Kevin Haynes, senior, Central Washington; Terry Samuel, junior, West Alabama; Dennis Gardeck, senior, Sioux Falls.
Backs — Tyler Hasty, junior, Central Washington; Tavierre Thomas, senior, Ferris State; J.R. Stevens, sophomore, Indiana, Pennsylvania; Chris Johnson, junior, North Alabama.
Punter — Justin Marcha, senior, Emporia State.

SECOND TEAM
OFFENSE
Quarterback — Travis Tarnowski, senior, Ashland.
Running back — Walter Fletcher, sophomore, Edinboro; Deshawn Jones, sophomore, Missouri S&T.
Linemen — Andrew Alten, senior, Findlay; Jerron Seales, senior, Indiana, Pennsylvania; Jake Daugherty, senior, Ferris State; Daniel Owens, senior, Wingate; Jared Machorro, senior, Texas A&M-Commerce.
Tight end — Qua Boyd, junior, West Alabama.
Receivers — Marcus Johnson, senior, Slippery Rock; Jalen Tolliver, senior, Arkansas-Monticello.
All-purpose player — Ja’Quan Gardner, senior, Humboldt State.
Kicker — Cole Tracy, senior, Assumption.

DEFENSE
Linemen — Evan Perrizo, senior, Minnesota State; Zach Seiler, junior, Ferris State; Nathan Shepherd, senior, Fort Hays State; John Williamson, junior, West Florida.
Linebacker — Kyle Kitchens, senior, Catawba; Sam Blankenship, junior, Harding; Tyler Morrisey, junior, West Chester.
Backs — Tevin Madison, senior, West Alabama; Cua’ Rose, junior, Arkansas Tech; Aaron Ivory, senior, Findlay; Marvin Conley, junior, West Florida.
Punter — Zach Gaines, sophomore, West Alabama.

HAYS, Kan. – The Fort Hays State women scored 17 unanswered points to open their game with Tabor College. After the Bluejays (9-3) scored five straight the Tigers (8-2) answered with a 23-0 run and cruised to a 90-44 win at Gross Coliseum. It was also head coach Tony Hobson’s 600th career win in his 26 years as a collegiate head coach, 187 of them at FHSU.

Tony Hobson Postgame Interview

Emma Stroyan Postgame Interview

Game Highlights

The Tigers hit seven of their eight 3-pointers in the first half and finished 8-of-16 from beyond the arc. They shot 56-percent for the game and outrebounded the Bluejays by 20.

Emma Stroyan scored 11 points in the first quarter and tied her career-high with 29 points. Kacey Kennett scored 13 and Lindsey Shupe added a career-best 12.

The Fort Hays State women’s basketball team will take a break from conference play when the Tabor Bluejays make the trip to Hays on Wednesday (Dec. 13). First tip is set for 7 p.m. inside Gross Memorial Coliseum.

The Tigers will gladly return home, where they are 5-0 this season, after dropping a pair of road contests last week. FHSU enters the non-conference affair 7-2 overall and 2-2 in the MIAA, while Tabor is 8-3 on the year and 6-1 in KCAC. The Bluejays rank 17th in the latest NAIA Division II Coaches’ Poll.

Tony Hobson Weekly Press Conference

Emma Stroyan

Fort Hays State has dominated the all-time series with Tabor in every sense of the word, winning all 18 contests. The Bluejays lost by just three points twice in the ’70s, but FHSU has won 15-straight by double-figures. The Tigers are 14-0 against Tabor at home and 6-0 in the series under head coach Tony Hobson.

The Tigers easily dispatched of the Bluejays in their most recent meeting last season, cruising to a wire-to-wire 71-38 victory. FHSU made 15 steals in the win, with 11 different Tigers recording a takeaway. Kacey Kennett led all returners with 13 points while Emma Stroyan added 11 points and a career-high five blocks.

The well-balanced Tiger offense now features six players averaging seven or more points, with all six leading the Tigers in scoring in at least one game so far this season. Stroyan led the team with points per game last week thanks to a 7-for-7 effort from the charity stripe and a trio of 3-pointers, giving her more in the last two games than she had in her first 36 games as a Tiger (2).

Tabor has reached the NAIA Division II tournament each of the last four years, reaching the Sweet 16 three years in a row after advancing to the Elite Eight in 2015 and 2016. Morgan Ediger leads Tabor with 16.5 points and 1.7 steals per game. Taylor Deniston dishes out three assists each night while ranking second on the team with 10.3 points per outing. Kristyn Wedel grabs a team-high 5.8 rebounds per game while recording one block per contest.

HAYS, Kan. – Adrian Pilkington, head softball coach at Fort Hays State, announced the signing of four student-athletes for the 2019 season. All four are currently seniors in high school and will join the Tiger program in the fall of 2018. The four individuals signing with Fort Hays State include Elise Capra, Megan Feiner, Allicyn Harris, and Taylor Humphries.

Capra was an all-state selection and first-team all-region selection as a senior at Erie High School. She was a CCGS All-Star selection and twice earned all-conference honors in her prep career. As a senior, she hit .422 with 17 extra-base hits (7 doubles, 5 triples, 5 home runs), 31 RBI, and 26 runs scored. She projects to play either catcher or a corner infield position.

Feiner was an all-state selection as a senior at Golden High School. The three-time all-conference selection hit .533 as a senior with 18 extra-base hits (11 doubles, 1 triple, 6 home runs), while driving in 22 runs and scoring 11. Feiner hit over .400 in her final three seasons of high school. She is also an accomplished snowboarder as she competed for the U.S. Junior Worlds Team in 2017 in the Czech Republic. Feiner has experience as both an infielder and outfielder, along with time at catcher.

Harris was the Texas District 13-5A Utility Player of the Year as a senior at Heritage High School. She was a three-time all-district selection as well. Harris projects to play the middle infield, but also has the ability to move around the field as a utility player.

Humphries was a two-time all-state selection and four-time all-conference selection at Horizon High School. As a senior, she hit .481 with 13 extra-base hits (9 doubles, 2 triples, 2 home runs), 22 RBI, and 17 runs scored. She projects to play middle infield position.

Name Pos B/T Ht Hometown Previous School
Elise Capra C/INF R/R 5-6 Erie, Colorado (Erie HS)
Megan Feiner UT L/R 5-4 Golden, Colorado (Golden HS)
Allicyn Harris INF/UT R/R 5-7 McKinney, Texas (Heritage HS)
Taylor Humphries INF R/R 5-8 Thornton, Colorado (Horizon HS)

WICHITA, Kan. – The Fort Hays State wrestling team finished fourth place as a team after recording 65 team points in the Reece Wright-Conklin Jet Invitational on Sunday (Dec. 10). The Tigers left the tournament with five placers and one champion. Redshirt-freshman Efe Osaghae (157 lb) claimed his first individual title as a Tiger. Jordan Davis ended his day with a runner-up finish in the 197-pound weight class. Brody Lewis (149 lb) and Marty Verhaeghe (165 lb) captured third place finishes while Micquille Robinson earned a fourth place finish in the 184-pound weight class.

Brody Lewis took to the mat for the Tigers in the 149-pound weight class. Lewis dropped his first round match to Marqual Graham of Northeastern Oklahoma, falling to him by a 6-4 decision. He rebounded well when we defeated Jake Hattabaugh of Newman in the second round with a 9-3 decision. Lewis dropped his round match to Will Steltzlen of Central Oklahoma by pin in 1:21. He earned a 4-0 decision over Dakota Schutter of Truman State in the fourth round. Lewis pinned Madison Leanio of Kansas Wesleyan in 4:44 in the fifth round. Lewis finished the day with a 3-2 record.

Efe Osaghae opened his day in the 157-pound weight class with a first round pin of Devin Conklin from Kansas Wesleyan in 2:20. He defeated Zeke Rubio of Northeastern Oklahoma in third round match with a 15-3 major decision. Osaghae defeated Tyler Mies of Newman with a 6-3 decision in the fourth round. He ended his day with a 2-1 record.

Marty Verhaeghe started off his day on a good note with a 15-3 major decision over Zach Taylor of Truman State in the first round. Verhaeghe dropped his match in the second round to Wyatt Jordan of Northeastern Oklahoma by a 13-0 major decision. He pinned Noah Perkins of Newman in the third round in 4:27. Verhaeghe dropped his fourth round match to Mason Thompson of Central Oklahoma in a 9-3 decision. He defeated Nick Desch of Bethany College with a 17-4 major decision in the fifth round. Verhaeghe finished his day with a 3-2 record.

Micquille Robinson was pinned in his first round match today at the hands of Alex Kauffman from Northeastern Oklahoma in 5:35. Robinson returned the favor in the second round as he pinned Shane Gallagher of Truman State in 4:51. He picked up a 9-1 major decision over Tanner O’Donnell in the third round. Robinson dropped his last two matches of the day to Noel Torres of Newman (6-1 decision) and Joel Dixon of Central Oklahoma (fall, 2:51).

Jordan Davis pinned his first opponent, Joe Steve of Bethany College, in 4:15. He defeated his second round opponent, Gus Boyd of Northeastern Oklahoma, with an 11-5 decision. Davis dropped his round three match to Colton Looper of Central Oklahoma via a fall in 1:34. He bounced back with back-to-back pins over Jules Joseph of Truman State (3:49) and Jacob Stoneberger of Newman (2:26). He finished his day with a 3-1 record.

The Tigers are back in action next weekend (Dec. 16-17) as they travel to Indianapolis, Ind. to compete at the Midwest Classic.

EMPORIA, Kan. – Hadley Gillum recorded his third double-double of the season scoring 21 points and grabbing 11 rebounds as Fort Hays State picked up their 100th all-time win over Emporia State Saturday, 69-58. It was also their sixth straight over the Hornets at White Auditorium.

Mark Johnson Postgame Interview

Game Highlights

Brady Werth added 14 points before fouling out and Aaron Nicholson scored 10, all in the second half as the Tigers move to 3-1 in the MIAA and 7-3 overall. Nicholson went 2-for-2 from beyond the arc. His first tied the game at 50. The second pushed the lead to eight with 2:29 to play.

FHSU used a 17-4 first half run to build a 10-point lead and were up nine at halftime. They quickly pushed the lead to 13 with 16:43 to play only to see the Hornets answer with a 20-4 run to get within three with 10:28 to play. The lead with still three with just under 10 minutes left when Nicholson scored five points in a 7-0 run.

The Tigers shot 51-percent for the game while holding the Hornets to a season-low 35-percent.

EMPORIA, Kan. – The Fort Hays State women rallied from 11 points down at the start of the fourth quarter to take a one-point lead with 3:16 to play, but Emporia State outscored them 7-3 the rest of the way for a 73-70 win Saturday at White Auditorium. Taylor Rolfs, who hit all five of her 3-pointers in the second half, missed on one in the closing seconds that would have forced overtime.

Tony Hobson Postgame Interview

Game Highlights

The Tigers (7-2, 2-2 MIAA) used a 17-2 furn over the first and second quarters to build a 10-point lead early in the second. The Hornets (6-2, 2-0 MIAA) would close the half on a 14-4 run to tie the game 30-30 at the break. The run would extend to 31-11 helping then to a 10-point lead with 2:36 to play in the third quarter.

Fort Hays State opened the fourth quarter with a 15-5 run and tied the game 62-all on a Taylor Rolfs 3-pointer. Kasey Kennett hit her only 3-pointer with 3:16 to play to give the Tigers their last lead at 67-66.

Emma Stroyan led the Tigers with 18 points, Rolfs added a career-best 17 and Tatyana Legette scored 17.

Tyra Jones led the Hornets with 25 points.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – The United Soccer Coaches announced its NCAA Division II Scholar All-Region selections for the 2017 season. The organization selected Fort Hays State senior goalkeeper Michael Yantz to its All-West Region Team. The United Soccer Coaches recognizes four regions of the United States for this award. FHSU is part of the West Region for this award.

2017 United Soccer Coaches NCAA Division II Men’s Scholar All-West Region Team

Yantz is the only goalkeeper named to this prestigious list for the entire West Region, which includes all states west of a line that splits the east borders of North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Texas.

Yantz, a three-time All-MIAA selection at goalkeeper, is majoring in International Business and Marketing at Fort Hays State. The Warsaw, Indiana native holds a cumulative GPA of 3.78.

To be eligible for selection to the Scholar All-Region Team, the student athlete must be nominated by their head coach and meet the following criteria:
Have at least a 3.30 cumulative grade point average (on a 4.0 scale) throughout his or her career
Start more than 50 percent of all games and be an elite player as supported by playing honors (i.e., all-conference) or contributions to the success of his/her team.
Plays for a current United Soccer Coaches College Services member institution
Senior College:
Be a junior or above in academic standing at the current institution.
Be in his or her second year at the current institution if a transfer student.