By FHSU SPORTS INFORMATION
ST. JOSEPH, Mo. – The Fort Hays State women’s basketball team used a dominant second half to defeat second-ranked Minnesota State by double figures on Saturday (Nov. 11), 83-67. Two Tigers set new career highs in the win, with Katie Wagner putting up 32 points and Brooke Loewe tallying 15 points, all in the second half.
The Tigers (2-0) never trailed for the second game in a row, with the Tigers scoring the first points 75 seconds in on a Wagner free throw. Both teams struggled from the floor out of the gates, with each hitting just four field goals in the opening frame. Fort Hays State led 14-9 after the first thanks to four free throws and a pair of triples from Wagner and Ellie Stearns.
Fort Hays State pushed the lead to 11 before the under-five media timeout in the second quarter, but the Mavericks (2-3) fought back to close back within five at halftime, 29-24. Wagner (18 points) and Stearns (seven points) combined for 25 of FHSU’s 29 points over the opening 20 minutes.
The rest of the squad kicked things into gear out of the locker room, with FHSU hitting more than half of its shots in the second half (15-of-28, 53.6 percent). Five different Tigers scored at least five points in the second half, including 15 second-half points on 6-of-8 shooting from Loewe.
Minnesota State pulled within one possession early in the third quarter, but a nine-point Tiger run late in the frame pushed the advantage to 15 points. Wagner opened the run with two free throws before Loewe buried a 3-pointer following a Wagner offensive rebound. Loewe dropped in a fast-break layup the next trip down the floor before Stearns also scored in transition, giving the Tigers points on four-straight possessions and a 57-42 lead.
Back-to-back 3-pointers from Emma Ruddle helped the Tigers build a 20-point lead early in the fourth quarter, 69-49.
Wagner climbed two spots on the all-time scoring list at Fort Hays State thanks to her career day, moving into 15th with 1,205 career points to pass Kelly Priest (1997-01 and Jill Faxon (2013-17).
Olivia Hollenbeck recorded a pair of blocks in the win, passing Tatyana Legette (2015-19) to move into fifth in career blocks with 127.
The Tigers finished the game shooting 41.7 percent from the floor (25-of-60) and 34.8 percent from behind the arc (8-of-23). Fort Hays State attempted 35 free throws on the day, its most in a game in nearly two years (36 vs. Cameron, 11/20/21).
Fort Hays State limited the Mavericks to 31.6 percent shooting from the floor (25-of-79), while MSU outrebounded the Tigers by 10, 53-43. Minnesota State collected 25 offensive rebounds, compared to 14 for the Tigers, while both teams managed 15 second-chance points.
Stearns finished the game with 15 points, one off her career-high, while Sydney Golladay distributed six assists to lead the team. Wagner and Loewe dished out five assists each, while Loewe led the team with three steals.
Fort Hays State will return to action next weekend when they travel to Colorado to take on Colorado Mesa on Sunday (Nov. 19, 3 p.m. CT/2 p.m. MT) in Lakewood (hosted by Colorado Christian) and MSU Denver on Monday (Nov. 20, 3 p.m. CT/2 p.m. MT) in Denver.
Friday
ST. JOSEPH, Mo. – The Fort Hays State women’s basketball team opened the 2023-24 season and the Talia Kahrs era with a 79-54 win over Minot State Friday afternoon (Nov. 10) in the Central Region Showcase. The Tigers (1-0) hit better than 50 percent from the floor (32-of-63) and had six players score eight or more points in the victory.
Olivia Hollenbeck opened the game with a layup after winning the opening tip, giving the Lincoln, Neb. native 1,000 career points as a Tiger. She is the 25th player in program history to reach the milestone. Hollenbeck finished the day 5-for-5 from the floor, scoring 11 points alongside five rebounds and one block.
More than half of FHSU’s points came off the bench (41 bench points), including a game-high 12 points from Clary Donica and 10 from Ellie Stearns. FHSU held Minot State (1-3) without a double-digit scorer and limited the Beavers to 33.3 percent shooting from the floor (18-of-54).
Both teams got off to a slow start, combining to shoot less than 30 percent from the floor in the opening quarter. Fort Hays State led 13-7 after the first 10 minutes, but MSU closed within one possession after opening the second quarter with a 3-pointer. The Tigers scored the next seven points to push the lead to double figures, including another Hollenbeck layup and a 3-pointer from Megan Earney.
Fort Hays State later closed the first half by scoring the final seven points, including five from Sydney Golladayand two from Stearns, giving the Tigers a 38-24 lead at halftime.
The Tigers would maintain their double-digit advantage the rest of the afternoon, eventually leading by as many as 33 points following a stick-back layup from Mallory Cowman late in the third quarter. Fort Hays State was nearly perfect out of the locker room, knocking down 10-of-13 from the floor during the third stanza. Donica (3-for-3), Katie Wagner (2-for-2) and Emma Ruddle (2-for-2) combined to go a perfect 8-for-8 from the floor during the period.
Minot State won the fourth quarter, 19-14, but enough damage had been done over the first 30 minutes to give the Tigers a comfortable winning margin.
Fort Hays State dominated on the boards, outrebounding the Beavers 43-28. The Tigers collected 14 offensive rebounds, including three each from Donica and Kate Dilsaver, helping the Tigers to 21 second-chance points. FHSU outscored Minot State in the paint, 42-20.
Brooke Loewe led the team in assists, dishing out five assists to go along with four points, two rebounds and one steal. Golladay added four assists while tying with Stearns and Landon Forbes with two steals.
The Tigers poured in 9-of-29 from behind the arc (31.0 percent), including a 3-for-5 effort from Ruddle.