FHSU Sports Information Department
Fort Hays State Volleyball earned one of the biggest wins in program history last week with a 3-0 win over No. 7 ranked Washburn in Topeka. The Tigers handed a 13-0 Washburn squad its first loss of the season, but many may not understand how big the win was from a historical standpoint.
With the No. 7 ranking, Washburn was the second-highest ranked opponent Fort Hays State ever defeated in its NCAA Division II history, which dates back to 1991. It marked just the third win ever for FHSU against an AVCA Division II Poll Top 10 team, the last occurring in 2002 with a 3-1 win over No. 10 ranked Metro State in Hays. Metro State was the victim in two of the three wins against Top 10 teams all-time, the other occurrence in 2001 when FHSU defeated a No. 6 ranked Roadrunner team in Hays by a score of 3-2.
The win marked the first ever over an AVCA Top 10 ranked team on the road. The Tigers nearly reached the feat last year in a five-set loss at then No. 4 Nebraska-Kearney in Kearney. It also marked the first 3-0 win over a Top 10 team in school history.
Considering how solid the 2003 and 2004 FHSU teams were that made the NCAA Tournament back-to-back seasons, neither squad knocked off an AVCA Top 10 team. The 2003 squad that finished 25-7 lost all three of its matches to Top 10 teams, but went 2-3 against teams ranked higher than 10th. The 2004 squad that finished 31-5 suffered all of its losses to Top 10 squads, including four defeats to No. 1 Nebraska-Kearney and one to No. 7 Cal State-San Bernardino. The 2004 Tigers reached a No. 10 ranking nationally (program’s highest ever) and went 5-0 against all teams ranked higher than 10th. FHSU reached the regional final of the NCAA Tournament that year against Nebraska-Kearney, but could not find the recipe to get past a UNK team that held the No. 1 ranking for 12 consecutive polls that season.
Wins against AVCA Top 25 teams have been difficult to come by for the Tigers since their last appearance in the NCAA Tournament in 2004. Following a win over No. 22 Rockhurst in the NCAA Tournament First Round in 2004, the Tigers dropped 53 consecutive matches to AVCA Top 25 teams before a 3-2 win over No. 24 Truman in Hays during the 2011 season. Since that win, FHSU went 25 consecutive matches against the Top 25 without a win until the 3-0 triumph at No. 7 Washburn last Saturday.
The Tigers continue to seek their first-ever conference championship in volleyball, but a win over one of the region’s top programs was a huge accomplishment for the program. The Tigers play in the toughest region in NCAA Division II as the Central Region currently has 10 teams inside the Top 20 of the AVCA Rankings. Only eight teams will be selected to the regional of the NCAA Tournament. Nebraska-Kearney, currently No. 16 in the nation, is ninth among teams from the Central Region. The region currently boasts the Nos. 1, 3, 5, 9, 11, 12, 13, 14, 16, 19, and 25 teams in the nation, as referenced in the September 28 edition of the AVCA Division II Poll.
At 9-6 overall and 1-2 in the MIAA, the Tigers get another shot at knocking off a ranked team when they play at No. 13 Central Missouri on Friday (Oct. 2) before completing their weekend road trip at Lindenwood on Saturday.
FHSU v Central Missouri Live Stats