FHSU Sports Information Department
MARSHALL, Minn. – For nearly 35 minutes, the 10th-ranked Fort Hays State women’s basketball team struggled in its season opener against Upper Iowa on Friday (Nov. 13). The Tigers overcame a poor perimeter shooting performance to get by the Peacocks 74-62 in the opening game of the Applebee’s Classic.
Upper Iowa held a one-point lead, 53-52, entering the fourth quarter, but FHSU outscored UIU 22-9 in the final 10 minutes. FHSU finally grabbed the lead for good with 6:48 remaining in the game when Jill Faxon hit a jumper to put FHSU up by one. The Tigers went on an 11-0 run to close out the game, fueled by six points from Beth Bohuslavsky and three from Faxon.
The Tigers shot just 2-of-17 from beyond the 3-point line (11.8 percent) but managed to shoot much better inside the arc (52.8 percent) to finish at 42.9 percent overall for the game. FHSU did well at the free-throw line, where it went 12-of-14.
FHSU overcame a 50 percent shooting performance by the Peacocks by forcing 30 turnovers. FHSU had just 12 in the game. The Tigers recorded 19 steals, led by Faxon and Nikola Kacperska with five each. Upper Iowa outrebounded FHSU 36-27.
Bohuslavsky had a team-high 17 points while Faxon added 16 and Paige Lunsford had 10. Lunsford led the team in rebounds with five and Bohuslavsky had a team-high three assists.
Brooklyn Schamens and Carly Pagel led Upper Iowa with 12 points each while Whitney Kieffer added 10.
The Tigers return to the court on Saturday (Nov. 14) against Applebee’s Classic host Southwest Minnesota State at 5 pm.