FHSU Athletics

Fort Hays State Softball was swept in Friday’s doubleheader with No. 15 Emporia State, falling 2-1 in the first contest before dropping a 4-1 game in the finale.

FHSU (21-18, 12-9 MIAA) travels to Topeka, Kan., Saturday for an MIAA doubleheader with Washburn.  Game time is set for 1 p.m.

Game 1: No. 15 Emporia State 2, Fort Hays State 1
Despite holding the 15th-ranked Lady Hornets to just two runs in the first game of the day, FHSU was limited to just one score in a 2-1 loss.

Paxton Duran (10-9) was dealt the loss, tossing six innings with two strikeouts while allowing four walks, six hits and two runs.

Tori Beltz was 2-for-3 in the game with a double and a walk, while Erin Elmore finished 1-for-2 with an RBI.

In the first, ESU took a 1-0 lead behind Kaitlyn Caston’s RBI single and held that advantage until the top of the fifth, when an RBI single from Elmore scored Duran from third.  Duran singled to start the fifth, moving around on a sacrifice bunt and a ground out. With two down, Elmore sent a 2-1 pitch in right field for the game-tying hit.

ESU took back the lead (2-1) in its half of the fifth off Caston’s second RBI of the day, this time coming on a squeeze bunt play.

Down to its last chance in the top of the seventh, FHSU put runners on the corners with two outs, but couldn’t force a continuation in the game.

Game 2: ESU 4, FHSU 1
The Tigers could not overcome an early deficit, falling 4-1 to the Lady Hornets in the second game of the doubleheader.

Kelsey Kimminau (10-8) saw her four-game winning streak snapped in the loss.  Kimminau tossed all six innings, giving up four runs (three earned) on seven hits, walking four with two strikeouts.

Beltz drew two walks in the game while Rilee Krier was 1-for-2 with an RBI.  Elmore, Samantha Villarreal, Amanda Vaupel and Mackenzie Villarreal also had hits for the Tigers.

The Tigers again fell behind early, trailing 2-0 after the first and 3-0 headed into the fourth, when FHSU struck back with one.  Beltz led off the inning with a walk, moving to second on a groundout.  From there, Vaupel’s single put runners on the corners with one out and Mackenzie Villarreal reached on an error to lead the bases.  Krier drove in Beltz for the first Tiger run of the game, singling a 1-2 pitch into center field.

ESU added another in the fourth off Danielle Sprinkle’s RBI single, making it 4-1, where it stayed for the rest of the night.

FHSU Athletics

Fort Hays State senior center Kate Lehman was named the BennettRank.com NCAA Division II Player of the Year on Friday (Apr. 10). She was also named to the BennettRank.com All-America First Team, her fourth All-America First Team honor this year, as she also received the honor from the WBCA, Daktronics/D2 Conference Commissioner’s Association, and Division II Bulletin.

Joining Lehman on the BennettRank.com All-America First Team are Chontiquah White of West Texas A&M, Mariyah Brawner-Henley of Lewis University, Amy Philamlee of Union (Tenn.), and Shaunteva Ashley of Augustana (S.D.). Shareta Brown of Wayne State (Mich.), the National Player of the Year by the WBCA, Daktronics, and Division II Bulletin was named to the second team by BennettRank.com.

BennettRank claimed that Lehman’s accomplishments are more impressive given that Fort Hays State plays in the toughest Division II women’s basketball conference in the nation, the MIAA (which had three of the top five ranked teams in the nation – FHSU, Emporia State, and Pittsburg State). Brown put up impressive numbers of 22.0 points and 14.7 rebounds per game, while shooting a Division II-best 64.9 percent from the field.

In addition to earning the MIAA Player of the Year honors this season, the MIAA named Lehman the Defensive Player of the Year for the third straight season. Lehman averaged 19.3 points, 9.9 rebounds, and 4.1 blocks per game while recording 55 career double-doubles and three career triple-doubles. Lehman was the first Division II women’s basketball player in history to reach 1,000 career points (1,917), 1,000 career rebounds (1,109) and 500 blocks (515) in a career as she helped the Tigers to the Central Regional Finals of the NCAA Tournament before falling to rival Emporia State.

The methodology to how BennettRank selected its All-America Team can be found at the following link…https://www.bennettrank.com/?p=74152.

Lehman helped FHSU reach new heights in its NCAA Division II history in 2014-15. She helped the Tigers to a record of 30-4 and their first-ever MIAA Regular Season Championship. It was the first-ever 30-win season at the NCAA level for FHSU and it extended a run of four straight seasons in which the program has churned out at least 20 wins, which spanned Lehman’s four years at FHSU. She helped the team to its first NCAA Tournament appearance in 10 years and the program’s first-ever NCAA Tournament wins, reaching the Sweet 16 (Central Regional Final).

Lehman adds this to the list of post-season honors she has received this year. Below are the honors she has already collected…
-Division II Bulletin All-America First Team
-WBCA National Player of the Year Finalist
-WBCA All-America First Team
-Daktronics/Division II Commissioner’s Association All-America First Team
-Daktronics/Division II Commissioner’s Association Central Region Most Outstanding Player
-Daktronics/Division II Commissioner’s Association All-Central Region First Team
-MIAA Player of the Year
-MIAA Defensive Player of the Year (3^rd straight year)
-All-MIAA First Team (3^rd straight year)
-MIAA All-Defensive Team (3^rd straight year)

Lehman finished 2014-15 with 655 points, 337 rebounds, and 141 blocked shots, while shooting 57.8 percent from the field. Her 515 career blocks ranks second most in NCAA Division II history and she is now the FHSU record holder in career rebounds and blocked shots. She finished second all-time in scoring. She finished fourth all-time at any level of NCAA (Division I, II, or III) in blocked shots.

2014-2015 BENNETTRANK.COM DIVISION II WOMEN‘S BASKETBALL ALLAMERICAN TEAM

FIRST TEAM
– Kate Lehman, Fort Hays State: 6’4″ Center, Sr., Newton, Kan.
– Chontiquah White, West Texas A&M: 5’11” Forward/Center, Sr., Dallas, Texas
– Mariyah Brawner Henley, Lewis: 6’0″ Forward, Jr., Skokie, Ill.
– Amy Philamlee, Union (Tenn.): 5’5″ Guard, Sr., Jonesboro, Ark.
– Shaunteva Ashley, Augustana (S.D.): 5’8″ Guard, Sr., Sioux Falls, S.D.

SECOND TEAM
– Shareta Brown, Wayne State (Mich.): 6’1″ Center, Sr., Pontiac, Mich.
– Morgan Pullins, St. Mary’s (Texas): 6’0″ Forward, Sr., Franklin, Mich.
– Emily Caswell, Caldwell: 6’1″ Forward, Sr., Wakefield, R.I.
– Aquillin Hayes, New Haven: 5’8″ Guard, Sr., Harlem, N.Y.
– Michelle Mitchell, Columbus State: 5’9″ Guard, Jr., Eastman, Ga.

THIRD TEAM
– Jada Blackwell, Cal Poly Pomona: 6’1″ Center, Sr., Rancho Cucamonga, Calif.
– Erin Chambers, Simon Fraser: 6’1″ Sr., Forward, Mission, B.C., Canada
– Madison Rowland, Queens (N.Y.): 5’10” Forward, Soph., Albany, N.Y.
– Jamie Johnson, Lewis: 5’8″ Guard, Jr., South Holland, Ill.
– Lindsay Stamp, Indiana (Pa.): 5’10” Guard/Forward, Sr., Erie, Pa.

BENNETTRANK.COM PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Kate Lehman, Fort Hays State
BENNETTRANK.COM COACH OF THE YEAR: Jenna Eckelberry, Shepherd

The Fort Hays State baseball picked up a walkoff win over Bethany Wednesday at Larks Park. The Tigers score six in the fourth to blow open a two-run game then tack on five in the seventh for the 16-6 run-rule victory.

Kevin Czarnecki hit a three-run homer then Cooper Langley followed with a solo shot to end the game early. Czarnecki also tripled and drove in four. Langley and Austin Unrein both had two hits while driving in three.

Brad Spires allowed three runs on four hits over five innings to pick up the win as the Tigers win for the fifth time in six games and improve to 11-22.

FHSU returns to MIAA play Friday and Saturday with a pair of doubleheaders at Pittsburg State.

FHSU Athletics

Former Fort Hays State wide receiver Ed Williams had a solid showing at Pro Day, held on Wednesday at the Schmidt/Bickle Indoor Training Facility. A scout from the Kansas City Chiefs was on hand to record the results of several Tiger seniors with hopes of continuing their careers at the professional level.

Williams met the standard the scout was looking for in the 40-yard dash, allowing him to get tested in several other evaluations, including the vertical jump, broad jump, 20-yard shuttle, 3-cone drill, 60-yard shuttle, and bench press. Williams continued to have a good showing in all of those evaluations as well.

Following all the tests and measurements, Williams ran routes for the scout to show his ability on the field. He made a couple of great catches where he had to make major adjustments to the thrown passes.

Williams was an All-MIAA First Team selection for the Tigers in 2014 as a senior, finishing with 53 receptions for 946 yards and seven touchdowns. He averaged 17.8 yards per catch. He also received All-Super Region 3 honors from Don Hansen and Beyond Sports Network.

Fort Hays State head men’s soccer coach Brett Parker has announced the signing of eight student-athletes for the 2015 season, all of whom will be incoming freshman for the 2015-16 school year. Two international signees from Asuncion, Paraguay, are part of the class, while two other signees hail from Colorado and Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri and Nebraska each have one representative. By postion, Parker’s signing class breaks down as three midfielders, two forwards, one goalkeeper, one defender and one defender/midfielder hybrid.

The Tigers finished the 2014 campaign at 11-6-4 overall and reached the NCAA Tournament for the third consecutive season – advancing to the Elite Eight for the first time in program history. The Tigers put together an 11-match unbeaten streak and posted a nine-game winning streak during the season (both school records).

Complete list of the team’s commitments is below…

Tyler Clifton
Freshman, Defender
Wichita, Kan.
Wichita Northwest High School

Zack Estrada
Freshman, Midfielder
Bentonville, Ark.
Bentonville High School

Mauricio Etcheverry
Freshman, Midfielder
Asuncion, Paraguay
Colegio Nuestra Senora del Huerto High School

Cullen Fisch
Freshman, Goalkeeper
La Vista, Neb.
Papillion-La Vista South High School

Fernando Insaurralde
Freshman, Forward
Asuncion, Paraguay
Colegio Nuestra Senora del Huerto High School

Caeser Jones
Freshman, Defender/Midfielder
Denver, Colo.
Cherry Creek High School

Dylan Kintner
Freshman, Forward
Kansas City, Mo.
Park Hill South High School

Louie Sawaged
Freshman, Midfielder
Highlands Ranch, Colo.
Mountain Vista High School

FHSU Athletics

The Fort Hays State tennis team edged Kansas Wesleyan on Tuesday evening in Salina, Kan., by a score of 5-4 in non-conference play. The Tigers moved to 10-8 overall with the win. Fort Hays State won two of three doubles matches and then split with KWU in singles play for the one-point win.

In doubles play, Camille Caron-Bedard adn Reinette Strydom teamed at the No. 1 position to defeat Amber Zimmerman and Heather Koester 8-4. The No. 3 team of Raven Dick adn Katie Harp defeated Taylor Noeal and Brenda Sanchez also by a score of 8-4. The No. 2 team of Jessica Johnson and Michelle Miller fell 8-6 to Cassidy Cook and Sydney Reece.

All singles matches finished in straight sets. At No. 1, Caron-Bedard defeated Zimmerman 6-1, 6-2. At No. 3, Strydom defeated Reece 6-1, 6-1 and at No. 4, Hipp defeated Sanchez 6-1, 6-0. Miller lost at the No. 2 position 6-0, 7-5 to Cook, while Johnson fell at No. 5, 6-4, 6-1 to Koester. Dick lost at No. 6 by a 6-3, 6-0 count to Noel.

The Tigers pick up another road non-conference match at Stephens College on Friday in Columbia, Mo., before taking on Lindenwood on Saturday in conference play in St. Charles, Mo.