BY MAKENNA ALLEN
The bus shook with the cheers of the Fort Hays State Women’s Basketball team as they traveled home from their game against Central Missouri on Sunday night. Fresh off an MIAA Championship victory over the Jennies, the Tigers, then ranked number two in the NCAA central region, were hoping for a chance at hosting the 2019 NCAA Regional Tournament.
Head Coach Tony Hobson had reminded his players that they had done all they could to secure the position. There was nothing else for the women to do but wait… until the tweet announcing the No. 1 seed for the Central Region came through. The results were in and it was exactly the outcome for which the team had been playing. Fort Hays State University would host the 2019 NCAA Women’s Championship Tournament Central Regional.
“It was pandemonium. It was a lot of yelling and cheering,” Hobson said. “They were happy that we had pulled that off.”
Indeed, the word “happy” only begins to describe the emotions that the players experience as they prepare for the first games of the tournament beginning this Friday.
“It’s been super exciting and I know it’s something we focused on all year, just winning our games and taking every game one game at a time,” junior forward, Belle Barbieri said. “I think that’s helped us keep our eyes on the prize and I think that’s why we’re here today. We’ve worked so hard every single game.”
The idea of “excitement” in preparation for the weekend also came to mind for senior forward and MIAA Player of the Year, Tatyana Legette, who found it difficult to define the importance of the team’s success in securing the home-court advantage.
“Really, no words other than just that we’re really excited about it. I think the girls have worked really hard for it and it’s shown,” Legette said. “I’ve never gotten to do anything as exciting as being the number one seed for [the] central region so we’re just going to prove that we deserved it and come out swinging.”
And that’s exactly what the team plans to do. As the first round of the tournament draws near, Hobson emphasized the importance of rest and recovery before returning to the normal practice routine.
“It’s mainly keeping your team refreshed and engaged mentally and enthusiastic,” Hobson said. “I just don’t see that being an issue this week. If you can’t get excited about what we’re getting to experience, you’re at the wrong place at the wrong time.”
Perhaps the greatest struggle for the team will be keeping this enthusiasm alive despite the fact that the tournament includes five teams from the MIAA Conference.
“You get a team you’ve played twice in the last three weeks [Pittsburg State]. So preparation for the first game is familiar,” Hobson said. “Fortunately, we have someone in the second round that we haven’t seen. I say fortunately but maybe not. Be careful what you wish for because they’re both good.”
Legette underscored Hobson’s belief in the skills of the MIAA teams and credits the proportion of teams in the tournament to the high level of play within the conference.
“I think it shows how tough the MIAA is. I personally think it’s the toughest conference and I know that there’s other people out there who think the same way,” Legette said. “I think that for us, it’s an advantage because we know how to guard them and what’s going to work offensively.”
Barbieri suggested that familiarity with the teams in the tournament could both help and hinder the Tigers on their path to success.
“It kind of feels like the MIAA tournament again. Most of the teams we have played recently too,” Barbieri said. “That kind of makes it a little tougher but it also means that we know their plays better. We’re more fresh on those and we know their players and their tendencies, something that could also work in our favor.”
Junior guard, Kacey Kennett, weighed this benefit as well as the home-court advantage when considering the upcoming games.
“We’re stoked to have our fans here,” Kennett said. “We know there’s going to be a lot of people here and it’s going to be loud and it’s going to be a great environment to watch some good basketball.”
Hobson could attest to the impact of the Tiger fans upon the team as he recalled the 2015 season in which Fort Hays hosted the tournament regional for the first time.
“It was really great last time. When they (the players) saw the number of people that were here and how loud it could get when it was full, they were impressed,” Hobson said. “The other teams were impressed with the support we had from our community.”
The 6,500 seats in Gross Memorial Coliseum were, in fact, nearly packed during the final game of the 2015 tournament, which brought out a crowd of 5,200 fans.
“There’s no season tickets. There’s no free tickets. There’s no nothing,” Hobson said. “These are paying customers and they filled it up.”
This weekend, Tiger fans prepare to see a confident No. 1 seed team take the court against Pittsburg State University. After clinching the MIAA Championship title and securing the position to host the regional tournament, the Tigers have much to celebrate. In doing so, the women achieved two of their goals for the season in what Hobson believed was a rare occurrence.
“It’s such an honor to get to do this two times in five years,” Hobson said. “There’s 42 teams in our region. It’s really rare to get to host a regional and for us to get to share this with our fans twice, we really don’t want to let them down and we really want to play well.”
Though Legette also recognized the significance of the Tigers’ placement as the No. 1 seed, she recalled that the accomplishment has not altered the team’s mentality as compared to the start of the tournament in 2018. The team entered the tournament last year as the No. 6 seed. However, according to Legette, they plan to play in the same manner, regardless of seed.
“Don’t play afraid to make a mistake. Don’t take anyone lightly. That’s the biggest thing,” Legette said. “But I don’t think our mentality has changed. Obviously, we all know we’re the No. 1 seed but we’re not going to take anyone lightly.”
Legette attributed a good portion of this dedicated mindset to the team’s desire to honor their coach and make their Tiger fans proud.
“These girls deserve it. Coach deserves it,” Legette said. “Honestly, this community deserves it because they’ve done so much for us and I’m glad we get to do this for them.”
With this focus, the Tiger’s Women’s Basketball Team will take the court in the first game of the NCAA Division II Regional Tournament, Mar. 15, at 5:00 p.m.
It’s now up to the Tiger fans to pack Gross Memorial Coliseum as the team tips off against the Pittsburg State Gorillas for the second time in just weeks. It’s time to show some support. It’s time for some Tiger pride.