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By RAEGAN NEUFELD
Tiger Media Network
Fort Hays State women’s basketball needed an edge against Pittsburg State in the MIAA tournament championship game, but never found it.
The Tigers fell 63-53 to PSU on Sunday. They struggled early, making just three shots in the first quarter, falling behind 15-7. FHSU got within three points early in the third quarter, but the Gorillas stayed relentless on offense to maintain their lead.
“In the first half we did a really good job of executing and getting a good shot, they just literally didn’t go in the basket,” FHSU Head Coach Talia Kahrs said. “The second half they made it a little tough, and our fatigue set in a little bit. We weren’t screening bodies as well so that our guards could get to the basket as well. For the most part, I thought we did a good job on what they were trying to do.”
Statistically, the game was an even match-up. Both teams made 19 field goals, six coming from the 3-point line for PSU and four for FHSU. The Tigers had just two more turnovers with 17, but they outrebounded the Gorillas 41-30.
“That was probably the one spot that we needed to get better at, and we did that today,” Kahrs said of the rebounds. “We crashed the boards every time and got second-chance points time after time, we just could not get the ball to go in the hoop.”
The difference maker for PSU was their free throws. When they made just one field goal in the second quarter, they made nine free throws. PSU also went 19-22 from the charity stripe for the game, compared to the Tigers’ 11-14.
The Gorillas were led by true freshman Macie Mays who had 17 points and three steals. Grace Pyle and Karenna Gerber followed with 15 and 10 points.
Katie Wagner, who was named the tournament’s Most Outstanding Player, led FHSU for the third game in a row with 20 points and 10 rebounds, her 13th double-double of the season. Sydney Golladay followed with 15 points and seven rebounds and Olivia Hollenbeck was close to a double-double with nine points and nine rebounds.
All three players have been in the program for four years and have played in three tournament championships during that time, winning in 2022.
“Obviously we have that experience in championship games and that helps us, especially going forward,” Wagner said. “I’m just very thankful for our team and how we’ve competed throughout the years. I’m proud of how we played today.”
Kahrs praised her upperclassmen and the consistent level of success they’ve been able to produce.
“That was their expectation,” she said. “They weren’t going to take no for an answer. We didn’t necessarily get there last year, but we learned from it and we got here this year because of it. Their class especially, with their leadership, that was their expectation and they made it happen.”
The Tigers were ranked third in the Central Region going into the conference tournament and will find out tonight what next week will look like.
“We’re just very thankful that we get the opportunity to play with one another, that our season’s not over yet and that we can use (the loss) as motivation to keep going,” Golladay said.
FHSU could potentially match up with one of four non-conference teams in the regional, so the team will be focused on resting and preparing.
“(We’ll watch” those teams, just trying to see what we can do and then watch the film from this week and see what we can get better at,” Kahrs said.
The selection show for the tournament begins at 9:30 p.m. on the NCAA website.