Fort Hays State finds itself in good position for a potential berth to the NCAA Tournament with two weeks remaining in the regular season. The Tigers are ranked No. 4 in the first set of Central Region Rankings released by the NCAA on Wednesday (Feb. 17).
With the top three teams in the region separating from the rest of the pack, Fort Hays State leads a cluster of seven schools ranked No. 4 through No. 10 in the region rankings that are battling for the final five spots in the Central Regional of the NCAA Tournament. The Tigers are 13-8 against NCAA Division II competition (16-8 overall), but went through the non-conference season undefeated with key in-region wins. Once again, games played at the very start of the season could be critical in the formula for FHSU making the NCAA Tournament.
The MIAA has six schools in the top 10 of the region rankings, showing the strength of the conference as a whole. Northwest Missouri State is No. 3, Lindenwood is No. 6, Nebraska-Kearney is No. 7, Pittsburg State is No. 9, and Missouri Southern is No. 10. Seeing the big cluster of teams from the MIAA in the rankings means conference games in the final two weeks are going to be critical to which teams get in the NCAA Tournament field.
The top two squads from the NSIC, Augustana and Minnesota State-Moorhead, along with Northwest Missouri State of the MIAA, have separated from the pack sitting comfortably in the top three positions. The Great American Conference has only one team in the region rankings, East Central, which sits at No. 8 in the rankings. With the parity in the MIAA, NSIC, and GAC this year, the rest of the teams in the rankings will be uncomfortable heading into conference tournaments. Winners of conference tournaments get an automatic bid to the NCAA Central Regional regardless their records or where they rank regionally, essentially with the ability to steal bids from teams on the bubble. Eight teams make the NCAA Tournament.
Below are the NCAA Central Region Rankings for February 17, 2016.
| Rank | School | Overall DII Record | In-Region Record |
| 1 | Augustana (SD) | 20-2 | 20-2 |
| 2 | MSU Moorhead | 21-4 | 19-3 |
| 3 | Northwest Mo. St. | 17-5 | 17-5 |
| 4 | Fort Hays State | 13-8 | 13-8 |
| 5 | Minn. St. Mankato | 14-8 | 14-8 |
| 6 | Lindenwood (MO) | 15-9 | 15-9 |
| 7 | Neb.-Kearney | 14-9 | 14-9 |
| 8 | East Central | 16-6 | 16-6 |
| 9 | Pittsburg St. | 14-11 | 14-11 |
| 10 | Mo. Southern St. | 14-11 | 14-11 |