The Fort Hays State football team jumped one spot to No. 7 this week in the D2Football.com poll, released late Monday (Oct. 31). It was the eighth consecutive week the Tigers have climbed in the media rankings.

The Tigers jumped Northwest Missouri State, who fell from No. 1 to No. 8 after losing to Pittsburg State Saturday. Fort Hays State will face off with the Bearcats this weekend in Maryville, Mo., with a chance to secure its first MIAA Championship. The Tigers and Bearcats are the only two MIAA representatives in this week’s poll.

Super Region 3 is well-represented in the poll, with six teams ranked in the top 13. Included in that mix is third-ranked Ashland, sixth-ranked Ferris State, FHSU,NWMSU, 10th-ranked Indianapolis and No. 13 Grand Valley State.

Two teams ranked in front of Fort Hays State have one loss in regional rivals Ashland and Ferris State. All 10 undefeated teams remaining in Division II are listed in the poll. Indiana (Pa.) tops the poll after being listed second last week.

Below is the D2Football.com Poll for October 31, 2017.

Team		Record	Previous
1	Indiana (Pa.)	9-0	2
2	Minnesota State	9-0	3
3	Ashland	8-1	4
4	Shepherd	8-0	5
5	Midwestern State	7-0	6
6	Ferris State	7-1	7
7	Fort Hays State	9-0	8
8	Northwest Missouri State	8-1	1
9	Texas A&M-Commerce	7-1	9
10	Indianapolis	9-0	10
11	Central Washington	9-0	12
12	Sioux Falls	8-1	13
13	Grand Valley State	7-2	14
14	Assumption	8-0	15
15	Wingate	8-0	16
16	Winona State	8-1	11
17	Virginia State	8-0	18
18	Colorado Mesa	8-1	19
19	West Georgia	7-2	20
20	Humboldt State	7-1	21
21	CSU-Pueblo	7-2	22
22	West Alabama	7-2	23
23	Minnesota Duluth	7-2	24
24	California	7-2	25
25	Findlay	8-1	NR

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Fort Hays State senior midfielder Derick Gonzalez has been named MIAA Men’s Soccer Athlete of the Week, announced Tuesday (Oct. 31) by the league office. It is the second time this season Gonzalez has achieved the honor.

Gonzalez had another strong weekend for the Tigers, helping Fort Hays State clinch at least a share of its first MIAA Championship. The Houston, Texas native recorded one goal and two assists in Thursday’s (Oct. 26) 5-2 win over Upper Iowa before recording the assist on a fantastic touch pass, setting up the lone goal in Sunday’s (Oct. 29) 1-0 win against Lindenwood. Gonzalez has now recorded a point in 14 consecutive matches, extending his school record. He attempted six shots on the weekend, two of which were on goal.

The Tigers will wrap up the regular season on Saturday (Nov. 4) when the host the University of Mary. Kickoff is set for 6 p.m. Fort Hays State will celebrate Gonzalez and the other four seniors on this year’s team with a Senior Night ceremony.

Fort Hays State Weekly Football Press Conference
October 31, 2017

Fort Hays State head coach Chris Brown conducted his weekly press conference in advance of the Tigers road game with Northwest Missouri State on Saturday afternoon in Maryville, Missouri.

Brown and select players met with the media inside Lewis Field on Tuesday, a session that can be heard by clicking on the links below.

Head Coach Chris Brown

Sophomore Defensive Back Tanner Hoekman

Junior Defensive Back Doyin Jibowu

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Fort Hays State senior running back Kenneth Iheme has been named MIAA Offensive Athlete of the Week, announced Monday by the league office (Oct. 30). It is the second time Iheme has earned the distinction this season, and the ninth time a Tiger has received a conference player of the week award this year, four more than any other school (Pittsburg State).

Iheme picked up 208 all-purpose yards in Saturday’s 34-7 win against Emporia State. The Wichita, Kan. native rushed for 146 yards, his fifth straight 100-yard performance on the ground, while grabbing seven catches for 62 yards and one touchdown. He averaged 7.3 yards per rush and 8.9 yards per catch, including a 54-yard burst with the Tigers backed up at their own 1-yard line and a 25-yard touchdown grab after making multiple Hornet defenders miss. Iheme now has 1,029 rushing yards through nine games this season, turning in the 20th 1000-yard season on the ground in FHSU history.

Safety Josh Hornback of Pittsburg State and linebacker Roc Robbins of Missouri Southern joined Iheme in earning MIAA Player of the Week honors for week nine.

The Tigers have now had honorees in eight of nine weeks this season, including Jacob Mezera (Week 1 Offensive Athlete of the Week), Brandon Brown (Weeks 1, 4, and 7 Special Teams Athlete of the Week), Nathan Shepherd (Week 2 Defensive Athlete of the Week), Monterio Burchfield (Week 3 Offensive Athlete of the Week), Jose Delgado (Week 5 Defensive Athlete of the Week), and Iheme (Weeks 6 and 9 Offensive Athlete of the Week).

Iheme will look to continue his strong season Saturday (Nov. 4) when the 6th-ranked Tigers head to Maryville, Mo. to face off with 8th-ranked Northwest Missouri State. Kickoff is set for 1:30 p.m. inside Bearcat Stadium.

The second edition of the NCAA Super Region Rankings for football released on Monday (Oct. 30). At 9-0, Fort Hays State is now on top of Super Region 3 in the No. 1 position. The Super Region consists of four conferences, the MIAA, GLIAC, GLVC, and GAC.

The top seven teams in the Super Region are selected at the end of the regular season to compete in the NCAA Division II Playoffs. Fort Hays State is seeking its first appearance in the playoffs since 1995.

Northwest Missouri State fell from the No. 1 position after having its 38-consecutive game win streak snapped that dated back to the start of the 2015 season. University of Indianapolis from the GLVC, the nation’s No. 5 ranked team, remained in the No. 2 spot, while Fort Hays State, ranked No. 6 nationally, made the leap from No. 3 to No. 1. Fort Hays State and Indianapolis are the only two teams that remain undefeated in the Super Region.

Ashland (8-1) and Ferris State (7-1) of the GLIAC moved up to No. 3 and No. 4 respectively. Ashland holds the upper hand between the teams by winning the head-to-head meeting. Northwest Missouri State (8-1) dropped to No. 5 following its loss to Pittsburg State. Grand Valley State moved up to No. 6, while Ouachita Baptist (7-2) of the GAC moved up into the No. 7 position.

Arkansas Tech (7-2), Central Missouri (6-3), and Harding (6-3) are on the outside looking in, sitting in the No. 8 through No. 10 positions.

The Fort Hays State at Northwest Missouri State game this Saturday (Nov. 4) in Maryville, Missouri, will have big implications not only just on a potential MIAA Championship, but also the NCAA Playoff picture.

The playoff format gives a bye to the Super Region’s #1 seed, while #2 plays #7, #3 plays #6, and #4 plays #5 in the opening round.

Below are the Super Region 3 Rankings for October 30, 2017. CLICK HERE for all Super Region Rankings.

Rank	Team	In-Region Record	Overall D2 Record
1	Fort Hays State	9-0	9-0
2	Indianapolis	9-0	9-0
3	Ashland	8-1	8-1
4	Ferris State	7-1	7-1
5	Northwest Missouri State	8-1	8-1
6	Grand Valley State	7-2	7-2
7	Ouachita Baptist	7-2	7-2
8	Arkansas Tech	7-2	7-2
9	Central Missouri	6-3	6-3
10	Harding	6-3	6-3

WACO, Texas – After breaking the program record for wins in a season this past Saturday and moving to 9-0 in the process, Fort Hays State moved up to No. 6 in the AFCA Division II Poll on Monday (Oct. 30).

The No. 6 ranking matches the best-ever for Fort Hays State in an official NCAA Division II Poll. The Tigers were No. 6 in the September 16, 1996 edition of the poll, produced by the NCAA Football Committee back then.

Former No. 1 Northwest Missouri State had its 38-game win streak snapped at the hands of Pittsburg State this past Saturday in Pittsburg, Kan. It allowed Fort Hays State to take over sole possession of the MIAA lead, but the teams will meet in a battle of Top 10 teams this Saturday in Maryville. FHSU will be attempting to grab the MIAA title outright, while NWMSU looks to pull back into a tie at the top of the standings with one more week in the regular season to follow.

Minnesota State takes over the No. 1 ranking this week, leaping No. 2 Shepherd (W.Va.) from the No. 3 ranking last week. Shepherd received more first-place votes, but overall Minnesota State had two more voting points. The top seven teams in the nation remain undefeated, while Northwest Missouri moved down to No. 8 this week.

After jumping back into the Top 25 last week for a second time this season, Central Missouri fell back out after a loss at Central Oklahoma. That leaves FHSU and NWMSU as the only two representatives from the MIAA in the Top 25. Other teams inside the Top 25 from last week’s Super Region 3 rankings include Indianapolis (No. 5), Ashland (No. 11), Ferris State (No. 12), and Grand Valley State (No. 19).

Below is the AFCA Division II Poll for October 30, 2017.

Rank	School (1st votes)	Record,	Pts.,	Prev.,
1.	Minnesota State (10)	9-0	822	3
2.	Shepherd (W.Va.) (22)	8-0	820	2
3.	Indiana (Pa.) (2)	9-0	777	4
4.	Midwestern State (Texas)	7-0	717	5
5.	Indianapolis (Ind.)	9-0	710	6
6.	Fort Hays State (Kan.)	9-0	683	7
7.	Central Washington	9-0	625	8
8.	Northwest Missouri State	8-1	577	1
9.	Texas A&M-Commerce	7-1	558	9
10.	Assumption (Mass.)	8-0	516	12t
11.	Ashland (Ohio)	8-1	510	12t
12.	Ferris State (Mich.)	7-1	483	11
13.	Sioux Falls (S.D.)	8-1	405	14
14.	Wingate (N.C.)	8-0	402	16
15.	Colorado Mesa	8-1	399	15
16.	Virginia State	8-0	347	17
17.	Humboldt State (Calif.)	7-1	295	18
18.	Winona State (Minn.)	8-1	289	10
19.	Grand Valley State (Mich.)	7-2	215	19
20.	Bowie State (Md.)	8-1	214	20
21.	Eastern New Mexico	7-1	190	21
22.	Findlay (Ohio)	8-1	159	22
23.	West Alabama	7-2	100	25
24.	Colorado State-Pueblo	7-2	88	24
25.	West Georgia	7-2	48	NR

Others Receiving Votes: Shippensburg (Pa.), 41; Central Missouri, 25; Slippery Rock (Pa.), 15; Ouachita Baptist (Ark.), 7; Minnesota-Duluth, 5; Washburn (Kan.), 4; California (Pa.), 2; Arkansas Tech, 1; Notre Dame (Ohio), 1.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – After ending the regular season with a 10-5-3 overall record and earning a 7-3-1 mark in MIAA play, the Fort Hays State women’s soccer team captured the No. 4 seed in the upcoming MIAA tournament. The Tigers drew No. 5 Missouri Southern for their first-round matchup, and will host the Lions at 7 p.m. on Wednesday in Hays.

The Tigers have now advanced to post-season play in the MIAA for the fourth straight season. Last year, the squad earned a share of the conference title, while also advancing to the Sweet 16 in the National Tournament. In 2016’s conference tournament, the Tigers defeated Missouri Western in the first-round on PK’s, but fell to Central Oklahoma in the semifinals 4-2.

The Lions and Tigers met this season back on Oct. 15 with the match ended at a 0-0 tie after two overtimes. Missouri Southern is on a three-match win streak and brings a 5-9-3 overall record and 5-5-1 mark in MIAA to the tilt on Wednesday.

Wednesday, Nov. 1 (at Higher Seed)
Game 1: No. 8 Emporia State at No. 1 Central Oklahoma 6 p.m.
Game 2: No. 5 Missouri Southern at No. 4 Fort Hays State 7 p.m.
Game 3: No. 7 Central Oklahoma at No. 2 Missouri Western 6 p.m.
Game 4: No. 6 Washburn at No. 3 Northeastern State 7 p.m.

Friday, Nov. 3 (at Highest Remaining Seed)
Game 5: Winner Game 1 vs. Winner Game 2 TBA
Game 6: Winner Game 3 vs. Winner Game 4 TBA

Sunday, Nov. 5 (at Highest Remaining Seed)
Championship Match: Semifinal Winners TBA

MANHATTAN, Kan. – Fort Hays State Men’s Basketball had its first tune-up game for the regular season when it took on Kansas State on Sunday (Oct. 29). The Tigers fell by a score of 79-56 to the Wildcats. FHSU trailed by just seven at halftime before K-State pulled away in the second half.

Mark Johnson Postgame Interview

Brady Werth Postgame Interview

Game Highlights

Fort Hays State trailed 31-12 in the first half before going on a 10-0 run to get back in the game. The Tigers closed the first half on an 18-6 run to cut the halftime margin to just seven, 37-30.

FHSU scored the first basket of the second half to cut the K-State lead to five, but an 18-4 run pushed the Wildcats back out to a 19-point lead. KSU cruised the rest of the way and the final margin of 23 was its largest lead of the game.

Marcus Cooper led the Tigers with 15 points on 3-of-6 shooting from the field and an 8-of-10 effort at the free-throw line. Brady Werth also reached double figures with 10 points. Hadley Gillum pulled down a team-high five rebounds.

Kansas State had four players in double figures. Xavier Sneed led the way with 18, followed by Dean Wade with 15, Barry Brown, Jr. with 14, and Cartier Diarra with 11.

The Tigers return to exhibition action at the University of Kansas on Tuesday, November 7 in Lawrence. Game time is set for 7 pm at Allen Fieldhouse.

HAYS, Kan. – The Fort Hays State men’s soccer team defeated the Lindenwood Lions 1-0 on Sunday. 29). The Tigers improved to 10-5-2 overall on the season and 7-1 in conference play. The Lions dipped to 8-7 on the year and 3-3 in the MIAA. FHSU clinched their first MIAA title in program history with the victory.

The first half consisted of a defensive battle from both teams as neither Fort Hays State nor Lindenwood could find the back of the net. The Tigers were able to get off three shots, as the Lions had five in the first period.

Out of the break, it was much of the same with a back-and-forth battle between the squads while no one was able to get the ball past either of the goalkeepers. The Tigers were able to get off seven shots as one of them scored through the net on a 30 yard strike from Luis Mendez in the 77th minute that was set up from Derick Gonzalez. Mendez notched his second goal of the season and Gonzalez extended his program record of consecutive matches with a point to 14 straight.

The Tigers were able to keep the 1-0 score until the end the match as they clinched at least a share of the MIAA title. The Tigers will share the title with Northeastern State if the RiverHawks win both their matches next weekend and will win the title outright if NSU loses or draws at least one contest.

The Tigers dominated possession in the second half as they outshot the Lions 10-7 in the match. Despite the Lions earning ten corner kicks, they were unable to capitalize on those scoring opportunities.

Michael Yantz was solid in goal today for the Tigers as he ended the match with four key saves against the aggressive Lion offense. Yantz earned the victory and improved to 8-4-2 on the season.

The Tigers will be back in action next weekend as they host the University of Mary on Saturday (Nov. 4) in their regular season finale. Kickoff for Senior Night is set for 6 p.m.

TOPEKA, Kan. – Jasmine Beaulieu netted her third goal of the season in double-overtime against Washburn as the Fort Hays State women’s soccer team captured the 1-0, golden goal victory over the Ichabods. With the win, the Tigers reach 10 wins on the season to improve their overall record to 10-5-3 along with a 7-3-1 mark in the MIAA. The Tigers, who earned the No. 4 seed in the MIAA tournament, will host a first-round match on Wednesday at 7 p.m. against Missouri Southern.

After a scoreless first half for both teams, the Tigers and Ichabods headed into the locker room tied at 0-0. In the first 45 minutes, Washburn out-shot Fort Hays State 5-2. This was the fifth-consecutive match the Tigers were unable to score in the first period of play against their opponents.

As the second half came and went just like the first, the score remained at zero a piece. FHSU and Washburn headed into the first overtime period but again neither team was able to get on the board. The lone goal in the match came at the feet of Jasmine Beaulieu who has now earned a goal in two-straight matches. The point came with just under two minutes remaining in the match as she brought in the ball off an assist from fellow senior Eden Stoddard, her fifth of the season. The combo of Beaulieu and Stoddard has secured the wins in the last two matches. The goal concluded the match and gave the Tigers the 1-0 win over the Ichabods.

The Tigers held the Ichaods to a shot-less second half as they collected 13. Throughout the two overtimes, Fort Hays State had the advantage in shots as they attempted five compared to just two from Washburn.

Kaitlin Minnich in goal for the Ichabods was given the loss as she amassed for 10 saves. The goalie duties for the Tigers switch heading into the overtime periods as Megan Kneefel took over for Kristen Thompson who faced five shots and collected two saves in regulation. Kneefel earned the victory alongside two saves of her own. With the win, Kneefel now sits with a 4-2-2 record in net for the Tigers.

The Tigers are next on the pitch on Wednesday at 7 p.m. as they play host to Missouri Southern who captured the No. 5 seed in the MIAA tournament. The first-round matchup is set to be played at FHSU Soccer Stadium.

HAYS, Kan. – Kenneth Iheme rushed for 146 yards while hauling in seven passes for 62 yards and touchdown leading seventh-ranked Fort Hays State to a 34-7 win over Emporia State in front of 4,519 Saturday afternoon at Lewis Field. The coupled with No. 1 Northwest Missouri State’s 20-10 loss at Pittsburg State gives the Tigers (9-0) sole possession of first place in the MIAA.

The Tigers can clinch their first MIAA title next Saturday when they play the Bearcats (8-1), who had their 38-game win streak snapped by the Gorillas, in Maryville.

Head Coach Chris Brown Postgame Press Conference

Jose Delgado Postgame Interview

Kenneth Iheme Postgame Interview

Game Highlights

Jacob Mezera completed 26 of 36 passes for 326 yards and three touchdowns with one interception. Mezera connected with tight end J.J. Lewis on an eight-yard touchdown pass on the Tigers first possession. They would be held to two field goals the rest of the half and led 13-0 at halftime.

Tyler Bacon’s 68-yard touchdown reception on the first possession of the third quarter pushed the lead to 20-0.

After the defense forced a three-and-out, the Tigers drove 93 yards in four plays capped by Iheme’s 25-yard touchdown catch.

After a goal-line stand by the defense, the Tigers capped the scoring on a two-yard touchdown run from Charles Tigner who rushed for 99 yards on 13 carries. It capped a 99-yard, 11-play drive.

Emporia State scored their only touchdown with 5:24 to play.

FHSU finished the day with 583 yards while holding the Hornets (4-5) to 223. Jose Delgado had 12 tackles and redshirt freshman Sterling Swopes was credited with 2 1/2 sacks.