By FHSU SPORTS INFORMATION
The No. 7/3 Fort Hays State women’s basketball team makes its home debut this weekend with a pair of non-conference matchups. The Tigers will open their home schedule Friday (Nov. 15) against Adams State at 7 p.m. before facing off with Cameron on Saturday (Nov. 16) at 5 p.m.
Both contests will be the second game of a doubleheader, with Nebraska-Kearney battling Cameron at 5 p.m. Friday and Adams State at 3 p.m. Saturday. Daily upper level general admission tickets are available for $10 and will be good for both games that day.
The Tigers return to Gross Memorial Coliseum with a 2-0 record after opening the season with a pair of wins last weekend in St. Joseph, Mo. Just one week into the season, FHSU is one of three remaining undefeated MIAA programs (UCO 3-0, UNK 2-0). Adams State brings an 0-2 record to Hays, while Cameron is 1-1 so far this season.
Fort Hays State has won 15 straight home openers, with the last loss coming at the start of the 2003-04 season. The Tigers are 23-4 in home openers during the NCAA DII era.
The Tigers have won their last 36 non-conference regular season games and 69 of their last 70. The streak is even longer at home, as the Tigers have not lost a regular season non-conference game inside Gross Memorial Coliseum since 2008, winning the last 52 such contests. Head coach Tony Hobson is 77-5 in regular season non-conference games, including a 54-2 mark at home.
It will be a renewal of an old RMAC rivalry Friday when the Tigers face off with the Adams State Grizzlies. Fort Hays State dominated the annual series, winning 23 of the 24 matchups between 1990 and 2006, including an unblemished 12-0 record in Hays. This is the first meeting between the teams since FHSU joined the MIAA in advance of the 2006-07 season. The Tigers are 9-0 against RMAC schools under Hobson
This is the third meeting all-time with Cameron, all of which have been played inside Gross Memorial Coliseum. The Tigers are 2-0 against the Aggies all-time, including one win under Hobson back in 2014-15 (93-52, 11/22/14). FHSU is 4-0 against schools from the Lone Star Conference under Hobson.
Belle Barbieri opened her senior year with a solid weekend in St. Joe, averaging a double-double with 11.0 points and 15.0 rebounds per game. Her 15.0 rebounds per contest leads the conference and ranks third nationally in NCAA Division II.
Kacey Kennett had a game to remember in Saturday’s win over Concordia-St. Paul. The senior led the Tigers with 20 points, her seventh 20-point performance as a Tiger, while matching her career-best with five assists and seven steals. She capped off the memorable day by eclipsing 1,000 career points for her career on a free throw that gave the Tigers the lead for good.
Lanie Page was FHSU’s leading scorer for the weekend, averaging 13.5 points per night. The senior paced the Tigers with 14 points in Friday’s victory before adding 13 points on Saturday.
Adams State dropped its first two games of the year last weekend in Stephenville, Texas, scoring 53.5 points per game while surrendering 72.5 points per game to its opponents. The Grizzles are led in scoring by Zakiya Beckles, who averages 10.0 points per contest. Ally McKenzie scored 19 points in Saturday’s loss to Adams State, including a 13-for-16 effort from the charity stripe.
The Aggies averaged 65.5 points per game last weekend while allowing opponents an average of 76.5 points per night. Sophomore Maighan Hedge leads Cameron in scoring with an average of 17.5 points per game. Freshman Kami Porter added 13.5 points per contest in her first action with the Aggies. CU turned the ball over 43 times last weekend, averaging 21.5 turnovers per contest. Head coach Emma Andrews is in her fourth season leading the Aggies, compiling a 33-53 record over that span.