ST. CHARLES, Mo.  – Lindenwood junior Connor Law (5-1) pitched a three-hit shutout as the Lions won the final game of their three game series with Fort Hays State 3-0 Sunday at the Lou Brock Complex. The Lions (15-18, 9-15 MIAA) took two of three from the Tigers (17-18, 11-13 MIAA) and have won three straight weekend series after starting conference play 3-9.

Lindenwood used a triple and a sacrifice fly to take a 1-0 lead in the first inning. They used another triple and two doubles to add two more runs in the sixth.

The Tigers, who dropped to 10th place in the MIAA standings, had only two base runners reach scoring position all day. Casey Sedbrook doubled with one out in the fifth and advanced to third on a sac fly but couldn’t score. Nick Hammeke singled to lead off the seventh and moved to second on a wild pitch but Law retired the next two batters to end the threat. Alex Weiss had the other hit for the Tigers.

Freshman Logan Herd (2-3) suffered the loss after giving up all three runs on four hits over five innings.

The Tigers return home Wednesday to play Nebraska-Kearney at 6 pm which can be heard on KJLS (103.3-FM).

HAYS, Kan. – The Fort Hays State softball team swept its second straight MIAA doubleheader Saturday, beating Washburn 6-5 and 3-0. The Tigers (17-26, 11-13 MIAA) went 4-0 on the weekend to jump up to seventh place in the MIAA standings.

Adrian Mohr Postgame Interview

 

FHSU used a pair of bases loaded walks in the bottom of the seventh to help them overcome a 5-0 deficit in the opener. Washburn reliever Marina Quimby walked four in the final frame including a couple with two outs to Rilee Krier which tied the game and Claudia Vazquez to win it.

The Tigers did all of their scoring in the second game in the third inning. Rilee Krier opened the inning with a triple then scored on an errant throw at first on a Claudia Vazquez bunt attempt. Vazquez scored on a single by Samantha Villarreal Mackenzie Villarreal knocked in pinch runner Chermayne Yago with an RBI single for the final run of the inning.

Game 1 Highlights

 

Paxton Duran picked up the win on both games, pitching 4 1/3 innings of relief in the opener, giving up just three hits with five strikeouts and a walk to pick up the win. She went the distance in the second game for her 12th win of the season. Duran limited the Ichabods to just four hits with five strikeouts and a walk, on the way to her fourth shutout of the year and second of the weekend. Duran went 4-0 in the circle for the weekend with two 3-0 shutout wins. She went 3-0 in her three and posted a 0.83 ERA for the week.

Game 2 Highlights

 

The Tigers look to stay hot on Tuesday when they head to Edmond, Okla. for a non-conference doubleheader against Oklahoma Christian.

ST. CHARLES, Mo. – Fort Hays State bounced back from a series-opening loss with a 12-6 win over Lindenwood on Saturday at the Lou Brock Sports Complex. A six-run second inning propelled the Tigers to the victory, evening the three-game series at one win a piece. FHSU moved to 17-17 overall and 11-12 in the MIAA, while Lindenwood dropped to 14-18 overall, 8-15 in the MIAA.

After Lindenwood scored two runs in the first, the Tigers took a lead for the first time in the series by scoring six in the second. A Connor Ross triple triggered the six-run rally and he came in to score on a Joe Mapes single. A two-RBI double by Nick Hammeke pushed the Tigers into the lead, 3-2. Trevor Hughes and Hammeke each scored on passed balls and Alex Weiss added an RBI single.

Lindenwood inched its way back into the game with a run in the second and two in the fourth to make it 6-5. But the Tigers pushed their lead to three with a run each in the sixth and seventh. Austin Unrein had an RBI single and Hammeke drove in another run on a fielder’s choice.

Lindenwood added one more run in the eighth, cutting the Tiger lead to 8-6, but FHSU put the game away with four runs in the ninth. The first run scored on a wild pitch, then Hammeke drew a bases loaded walk, his fourth RBI of the game. Ty Redington had an RBI single and Caleb Cherryholmes added an RBI on a fielder’s choice.

Kyle Voft threw four innings in his start, allowing five runs (two earned) on eight hits and three walks. He struck out four. Jackson Rolfs threw 3 13 strong innings of relief to earn the win. He allowed just two hits and walked one with four strikeouts, while holding the Lions scoreless. Giles Fox added 1 2/3 innings to earn his fourth save of the year, allowing a run on three hits.

Geoff Hartlieb took the loss for Lindenwood, going 5.0 innings in his start. He allowed seven runs (five earned) on seven hits and five walks with a strikeout.

The final game of the three-game series will begin at 12 pm on Sunday.

FHSU Athletics

ST. CHARLES, Mo. – Fort Hays State baseball dropped the opening game of a three-game series at Lindenwood by a score of 12-2 on Friday (Apr. 8). Lindenwood pushed across the 12^th run in the seventh to reach the run rule. FHSU moved to 16-17 overall and 10-12 in the MIAA. Lindenwood improved to 14-7 overall and 8-14 in the MIAA.

The Tigers had a difficult time solving Lindenwood starting pitcher Brendan Feldmann, who threw a complete game. He allowed just six hits and a walk, while striking out 11 Tigers. Both runs he gave up were unearned, coming in the sixth on a two-RBI double by Joe Mapes. FHSU was trailing 6-0 at the time and then Lindenwood put the game away with five runs in the bottom of the sixth.

D.J. Carr went five innings in his start for the Tigers, giving up nine runs (eight earned) on 10 hits and two walks. He struck out three. Casey Sedbrook threw an inning and allowed two runs. Connor Boyer got one out in the seventh before allowing the final run of the game. Austin Unrein was the only Tiger to record multiple hits in the game, going 2-for-3 at the plate.

The second game of the series is set to get underway at 1 pm on Saturday (Apr. 9).

HAYS, Kan. – Fort Hays State used a three-run home run to win game one of a doubleheader with Emporia State 3-0 Friday afternoon at Tiger Stadium. They then rallied for seven runs in the sixth inning to win the nightcap 7-4 for their fifth straight home wins. The sweep comes on the heels of a nine-game losing streak and has the Tigers (15-26, 7-9 MIAA) within two games of 500 on conference play.

Adrian Mohr Postgame Interview

Tori Beltz broke a scoreless tie with a three-run homer in the fifth inning of game one. Kylie Strand and Rilee Krier both singled ahead of Beltz who hit her 10th homer of the season and second in consecutive games. Paxton Duran held the Hornets hitless for the first 4 1/3 innings. She gave up five hits and struck out eight.

Game 1 Highlights

Emporia State (19-24, 7-9 MIAA) used three hits and a Tiger error and scored two in the in the second to take their first lead of the day in the second contest. The Tigers, who had two runners gunned down at the plate in the fourth, capitalized on two Hornet errors and rallied for seven in sixth to take the lead back for good.

FHSU had 11 consecutive batters reach base in the inning. Paxton Duran tied the game with a two-run triple to right field. Kylie Strand gave them the lead with an RBI single to right field. After two walks, Veronica Knittig was hit by a pitch to push across a run. Samantha Villarreal added a two-run single and a wild pitch scored Tori Beltz.

Game 2 Highlights

Emporia State scored two in the seventh before Paxton Duran closed the door for her second win of the day. Duran (10-16) gave up four runs (three earned) on nine hits with three strikeouts and one walk.

The Tigers get back to action on Saturday with another crucial MIAA doubleheader against Washburn at Tiger Stadium. Both teams enter the day four games under .500 in the conference standings. First pitch is set for 1 pm. You can hear it on KAYS (1400-AM) beginning at 12:45 pm with the Auto World Pregame Show.

The final WBCA Division II Rankings for the 2015-16 season have been released and Fort Hays State finishes at No. 24 in the nation. Fort Hays State was a part of every WBCA Poll this season, which included a 13-consecutive poll stay in the top 10 of the rankings this year. The Tigers earned their second consecutive trip to the NCAA Tournament, finishing in a tie for second in the MIAA.

Fort Hays State started the season at No. 10 in the nation in the WBCA Preseason Poll. The Tigers began their climb immediately in the poll by moving up to No. 7 in the first regular season poll and then No. 5 the following week. With a win over No. 1 ranked Emporia State on December 5, the Tigers vaulted all the way to No. 1 in the nation for the first time in program history at the NCAA level.

The Tigers enjoyed a stay at No. 1 for a month until their first loss of the season pushed them down to No. 3 in the nation on January 5. The Tigers held steady at the No. 3 ranking for three consecutive weeks before sliding back a bit more to No. 7 for two straight weeks. The Tigers bounced back and forth for a few weeks, moving up to No. 5, falling back to No. 10, and then moving back up to No. 9. The Tigers fell out of the top 10 for the first time on March 1, holding the No. 12 ranking. Following the MIAA Tournament, the Tigers slid a bit more to No. 16 and then after a loss in the NCAA Tournament, dropped to No. 24 in the final poll of the season.

The Central Region of the NCAA Tournament was stacked once again this year. Six of the eight teams that played in the regional entered the tournament ranked inside the top 20 nationally. A No. 16 ranked Fort Hays State team had to play No. 7 ranked Winona State in the opening round of the tournament. Another first round game pitted the No. 10 and No. 12 ranked teams against each other. All six teams are in the final poll with regional champion Pittsburg State at No. 6, Winona State at No. 12, Emporia State at No. 16, Arkansas Tech at No. 17, Missouri Western at No. 19, and Fort Hays State at No. 24.

The Tigers finished the season at 25-6 overall, the second best record in the program’s NCAA Division II history after a 30-4 mark in 2014-15. FHSU reached 20 wins in a season for the fifth consecutive year (a new program record) and made consecutive trips to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in program history.

Below is the final WBCA Poll for the 2015-16 season.

Rank	Institution – First Place Votes	Previous Rank	Record	Total Points
1	Lubbock Christian University (Texas) – 24	1	35-0	600
2	University of Alaska – Anchorage	4	38-3	576
3	Bentley University (Mass.)	25	29-6	502
4	Virginia Union University (Va.)	8	28-3	461
5	California Baptist University	5	29-3	393
6	Pittsburg State University (Kan.)	19	29-6	388
7	Ashland University (Ohio)	3	31-2	379
8	Grand Valley State University (Mich.)	NR	26-10	332
9	Florida Southern College	NR	27-6	320
10	Benedict College (S.C.)	11	29-3	313
11	Limestone College (S.C.)	2	30-1	310
T12	West Texas A&M University	15	28-5	309
T12	Winona State University (Minn.)	7	30-4	309
14	Drury University (Mo.)	14	26-5	302
15	Lewis University (Ill.)	6	28-3	278
16	Emporia State University (Kan.)	18	28-6	243
17	Arkansas Tech University	12	27-4	242
18	West Liberty University (W.Va.)	17	29-5	202
19	Missouri Western State	10	27-4	196
20	University of California – San Diego	21	26-5	193
21	Azusa Pacific University (Calif.)	13	27-3	183
22	Union University (Tenn.)	9	28-4	176
23	Francis Marion University (S.C.)	NR	24-9	174
24	Fort Hays State University (Kan.)	16	25-6	118
25	Augusta University (Ga.)	NR	24-9	62

Others receiving votes: New York Institute of Technology 45; Bellarmine University (Ky.) 31; Nova Southeastern University (Fla.) 29; Columbus State University (Ga.) 28; California University of Pennsylvania (Pa.) 22; Ursuline College (Ohio) 21; Quincy University (Ill.) 17; Anderson University (S.C.) 15; American International College (Mass.) 8.