By FHSU SPORTS INFORMATION
PITTSBURG, Kan. – The 11th-ranked Fort Hays State women’s basketball team muscled its way to an 81-72 win over Southern Nazarene in the quarterfinal round of the 2025 NCAA Division II Central Region Championship Friday afternoon (March 14). The Tigers improve to 28-4 with the win and will move on to the regional semifinals on Saturday (March 15), while the Crimson Storm conclude their season 23-8 overall.
Southern Nazarene got on the board first before FHSU scored six in a row to take the lead for good. The Crimson Storm kept the deficit at four or lower before Talexa Weeter and Megan Earney drilled back-to-back 3-pointers, pushing the Tiger lead to nine, 18-9. GAC Player of the Year Hannah Giddey answered with six points in the final two minutes, helping SNU close within 22-15 at the end of the first quarter.
The Tiger defense turned things up a notch to start the second quarter, limiting the Crimson Storm to just two field goals on its first 12 attempts of the period. FHSU took advantage on offense, going on an 11-4 run to push the lead to 14, 33-19.
The regular season GAC Champions wouldn’t go down without a fight, however, with SNU bouncing back with an 11-4 run of its own to pull within 37-30 by halftime.
Olivia Hollenbeck scored two quick layups off passes from Katie Wagner DeGarmo to put the Tigers back up double figures before FHSU scored eight in a row over a 69-second span, ballooning the lead as high as 17.
Hollenbeck kept the run going with two free throws before DeGarmo capitalized on a three-point play. Ellie Stearns followed with a 3-pointer from the left wing, giving the Tigers a 49-32 lead and prompting a Crimson Storm timeout.
Fort Hays State again led by 17 with three minutes to play in the third quarter before SNU closed the frame on an 11-5 run, closing within 63-52 with 10 minutes to play.
Hollenbeck opened the final quarter with another basket before Southern Nazarene scored eight in a row, closing within two possessions, 65-60. A layup from Weeter and a traditional 3-point play from DeGarmo helped the Tigers go back up eight with six minutes to play, but SNU responded with the next four points to pull within four, 70-66.
Fort Hays State combined to shoot 5-of-6 from the free-throw line and 3-of-4 from the free-throw line down the stretch to hold on to the win, including six points in the final three minutes from Weeter.
Weeter led the Tigers with 22 points on 8-of-11 shooting. DeGarmo finished the game just two assists shy of FHSU’s first triple double in more than a decade, recording 20 points and season-highs in both rebounds with 16 and assists with eight. She recorded her fourth double-double in seven NCAA Tournament contests in the process.
Hollenbeck totaled 17 points and poked away two steals, while Brooke Loewe recorded 13 points and seven assists.
Three SNU players scored more than 20 points, including 23 from Giddey and 20 each from Umi Otsuka and Braci Nyberg.
The Tigers shot 48.3 percent from the floor (28-of-58), while Southern Nazarene hit 43.8 percent of its shots (28-of-64). FHSU outrebounded the Crimson Storm by nine, 40-31.
Fort Hays State will take on either second-seeded Concordia-St. Paul or No. 7 seed Southwest Minnesota State on Saturday beginning at 5 p.m.
Notes:
– Fort Hays State is now 9-8 all-time in 10 NCAA Tournament appearances.
– The Tigers improve to 6-2 in the quarterfinals, 2-1 as the No. 3 seed, 2-0 against the No. 6 seed, 2-1 against GAC teams and 1-1 in tournament games played in Pittsburg, Kan.
– DeGarmo now has four double-doubles in seven career NCAA Tournament games. She averages 17.7 points and 10.6 rebounds per game in the big dance.
– The Tigers are now 3-0 all-time against Southern Nazarene.
– Weeter and DeGarmo both surpassed 20 points in a game for the eighth time this season, one shy of Hollenbeck’s team-leading nine 20-point performances.