By FHSU SPORTS INFORMATION
MARYVILLE, Mo. – The 15th-ranked Fort Hays State women’s basketball team dropped a road conference contest at Northwest Missouri State Saturday afternoon (Feb. 3), losing 69-55. The Tigers (16-5, 10-5 MIAA) were whistled for seven more fouls than the Bearcats (16-5, 10-5 MIAA) and attempted 10 fewer free throws than the home team.
The loss snapped a 10-game winning streak for the Tigers against Northwest Missouri State and is just the second Bearcat win over FHSU since 2011. Additionally, this is the first time the Tigers have dropped back-to-back games this season.
Both teams struggled from the floor early on, combining to shoot 4-of-15 from the floor before the first media timeout. The Tigers led in the early going after a 3-pointer from Emma Ruddle before Northwest got things figured out on offense, knocking down five-consecutive shots to score 13-straight points and open up a 10-point lead, 15-5. A Sydney Golladay triple and a layup from Olivia Hollenbeck helped the Tigers pull within five, but a late Bearcat 3-pointer put the home team up 18-10 after the first quarter.
That long-range make sparked another big Bearcat run, with Northwest scoring 15 of the next 18 points to go up 30-13. Another Golladay 3-pointer late in the second quarter helped the Tigers pull within 14 by halftime, 36-22.
Northwest pushed its lead to as many as 20 midway through the third quarter, 48-28, before the Tigers put together a 14-2 run to close within eight entering the fourth quarter, 50-42. Ruddle put up five points during the Tiger run, with Hollenbeck scoring four points. Katie Wagner buried a triple with less than five seconds to go to trim the deficit to single figures before stealing the ensuing inbounds pass and heaving up another 3-pointer that would’ve cut the lead to five, but rattled out.
The Bearcats regained control early in the fourth quarter, going back up by 19 thanks to a 15-4 run. Hollenbeck scored three-consecutive buckets to pull FHSU back within striking distance, but the Tigers could get no closer than a 10-point margin.
Hollenbeck led all scorers with 17 points on 7-of-12 shooting while adding a team-best seven rebounds. Ruddle added 13 points on a trio of 3-pointers, while Golladay had 11 points and five assists. Wagner totaled nine points, scoring fewer than 10 points for just the second time this season, while adding four steals and one block on the defensive end.
Northwest Missouri State won the rebounding battle by 10, 35-25, while FHSU turned the ball over two fewer times, (FHSU 13, NWMSU 15). The Tigers shot 40.4 percent from the floor (21-of-52) and 75 percent from the free-throw line (6-of-8), with the Bearcats hitting 45.1 percent from the floor (23-of-51) and 94.4 percent from the line (17-of-18).
The Tigers will return home to play five of their final seven regular season games at home starting Thursday (Feb. 8) when FHSU hosts Newman beginning at 5:30 p.m. inside Gross Memorial Coliseum.