Story by MAYAN PAZ Photos by RUBY DIAZ and ELLIE HEDMAN
Tiger Media Network
FHSU volleyball welcomed two of the top teams in the MIAA to Gross Memorial Coliseum over the weekend. Hoping to win a match to solidify their place in the MIAA Tournament, the Tigers dropped their two games to Emporia State (3-1) and Washburn (3-0). However, FHSU is still in the hunt with two games left to play in the regular season.
The Tigers played the Hornets on Friday, hoping for a good start to the weekend. The first set went exactly as planned, as the Tiegrs won it 25-17, gaining an early lead. However, Emporia responded with a 25-18 win in the second set to equalize the match, and went on to win the last two sets, completing a 3-1 victory over the Tigers. Ashlyn Reeves and Gracie Rains led the Tigers with 11.5 and 9 points, respectively.
Grace Shmedding and Kirsten Evans coming together before a play 
#22 Kirsten Evans ready to receive 
#15 Avery Eshleman getting a kill 
#20 Payton Bergschneider waiting for a play 
Team coming together for reassurance after a missed point 
#22 Kirsten Evans getting ready for a serve 
FHSU team coming together for timeout 
#22 Kirsten Evans getting ready to recieve 
#9 Gracie Rains getting a kill 
#12 Delaney Gish about to serve the ball 
#13 Grace Shmedding hitting the ball 
FHSU team coming together after a play 
#20 Payton Bergschneider about to serve 
Volleyball team coming together before a play 
#5 Annie Eaton setting for one of the teams hitters 
team waiting for a hit from ESU 
#7 and #11 coming together for a block
FHSU Head Coach Jessica Wood-Atkins said the team’s defense against the Hornets was the weak link in their game, and they were unable to find the right way to stop Emporia, resulting in the defeat.
Next, the Tigers hosted the No. 6 Washburn Ichabods. The first set went badly for the Tigers, as they lost control of the game in the middle of the set and lost it 25-12. In the second set, the Tigers seemed to follow a similar direction, trailing, 21-15. But FHSU found a way to come back to tie the set 23-23. However, the Ichabods found a way to win the next two points and secure the set, and then proceeded to win the third set, completing a straight-set win.
In their second set comeback, the Tigers found an unexpected leader, as Avery Ashleman scored 4 points in the final stretch of the set. Ashleman, a sophomore, didn’t receive a lot of playing time this season due to an injury, but capitalized on the opportunity she got to impress.
Number 20 Peyton Bergschneider and number 4 Caiya Stucky Reyes waiting for the serve to be made by Washburn. 
Number 15 Avery Eshleman and number 20 Peyton Bergschnider wait for the serve to be made. 
Number 22 Gracie Rains works alongside her teammates to block the ball. 
Number 15 Avery Eshleman prepares for the serve. 
The Tigers work together to block the ball at the net with backup behind. 
The Tigers work together to defend the volleyball court. 
Number 20 Peyton Bergschneider works alongside her teammate to block the ball at the net. 
Number 9 Gracie Rains hits the ball with number 22 Kirsten Evans behind her to back her up. 
Number 9 Gracie Rains blocks the ball at the net. 
Number 9 Gracie Rains is blocking the ball at the net. 
Number 4 Caiya Stucky Reyes and her other teammates giving high fives to Washburn. 
Number 4 Caiya Stucky Reyes, along with her other teammates, tells Washburn good game.
Wood-Atkins said that after watching Ashleman in training since she came back from her injury, her ability was no surprise.
“It just took her a while to get her rhythm back. And so it’s only in the last couple of weeks that she’s really been doing a great job in practice,” Wood-Atkins said. “And so we tried a different lineup that afforded us the opportunity to get all three hitters in, because typically you can only use two, so you’re using your top two most consistent hitters. And so we looked for the opportunity to put her on display, and that new lineup certainly did that.”
Grace Schmedding, who contributed 6 digs and 2 points against the Ichabods, spoke about what the team can improve ahead of their final two games.
“We need to clean up our game. We have a new lineup right now, and I think we need to do some cleaning up with that,” she said. “The players who haven’t been playing as much need to go in and get reps, clean up, and reduce our errors. This will enable us to score more points aggressively, rather than waiting for the other team to make mistakes.”
FHSU (15-11, 4-10) is just one game ahead of Arkansas-Fort Smith (13-14, 3-11), Northwest Missouri State (9-14, 3-11) and Missouri Southern (9-17, 3-11), who are all vying for the No. 8 spot in the MIAA Tournament standings. Conversely, FHSU is just one game behind Pittsburg State (11-13, 5-9) for the No. 7 spot.
FHSU hosts Missouri Western on Thursday before closing out the regular season from inside GMC on Friday against Northwest Missouri State.