FHSU Athletics
TOPEKA, Kan. - The eighth-ranked Fort Hays State women's basketball team put together a dominant road performance at Washburn on Thursday, defeating the Ichabods 85-47. The 38-point margin is the Tigers' largest margin of victory against a Division II team this season and is tied for FHSU's largest margin of victory in series history against Washburn.
Katie DeGarmo collected 11 rebounds in the win, allowing the graduate student to pass Kate Lehman with a school-record 1,110 career rebounds.
Washburn (11-10, 5-6 MIAA) scored first and led for all of 19 seconds before the Tigers (17-2, 8-2 MIAA) took complete control, scoring the next 10 points. Olivia Hollenbeck dropped in a pair of layups to give FHSU the lead and Bailey Wilborn knocked in a 3-pointer before DeGarmo added a field goal and a free throw to complete the run.
The Tiger defense held Washburn without a field goal for nearly six minutes, forcing five consecutive Ichabod misses and creating three turnovers during the stretch. FHSU eventually led by as many as 11 in the quarter, including an 18-7 advantage at the end of the opening frame.
Washburn scored the first three points of the second quarter to momentarily close within single digits, but a pair of free throws from Kate Dilsaver allowed the Tigers to stretch the lead back to double figures where it would stay the rest of the evening.
Fort Hays State finished the first half on a 17-4 run over the last four minutes of the second quarter, building the lead at the break to 41-17. The Tigers were virtually perfect on offense over that run, hitting 6-of-6 from the floor with five assists while hitting both of their free throw attempts and all three of their shots from behind the arc.
Talexa Weeter scored eight of her game-high 19 points during the run, hitting three shots and two free throws. Dilsaver added a pair of 3-pointers before Megan Earney drilled another triple at the end of the frame, putting the Tigers up 24.
Two baskets each from Hollenbeck and Dilsaver and another from Wilborn helped the Tigers to a 10-0 run early in the third quarter. Fort Hays State scored on five-straight possessions during the run while forcing four Ichabod turnovers. Weeter and Ellie Stearns both hit 3-pointers down the stretch of the third quarter, giving FHSU a 64-30 advantage after 30 minutes of play.
The Tigers continued to pad its lead in the fourth quarter thanks to a shooting percentage of 57.1 percent in the final frame (8-of-14).A smothering Fort Hays State defense held Washburn to its lowest scoring output of the season, four points below their previous season low of 51 points. The Tiger bench racked up 37 points compared to 38 points from the Ichabod starting lineup.
Fort Hays State created 19 WU turnovers thanks to 14 steals, including five from Brooke Loewe. The Tigers scored 27 points off those turnovers while outrebounding the Ichabods by 11, 40-29.Weeter added six rebounds, three steals, one assist and one block to her game-high point total. Hollenbeck and Dilsaver both finished with 12 points, while Wilborn scored a season-high 10 points.
The Tigers finished the game shooting 33-of-65 from the floor (50.8 percent), an identical shooting percentage to the last time FHSU defeated Washburn last month and the sixth time this season the team has hit at least half of its field goal attempts.
Fort Hays State combined for a season-high eight 3-pointers in the victory, including two each from Wilborn, Dilsaver and Earney.
The Tigers have now won 10 in a row against the Ichabods, extending their longest winning streak in series history. This was FHSU's fourth-straight road win in Topeka, the longest such stretch in team history.
UP NEXT
The Tigers will wrap up their four-game road trip on Saturday when they look to complete the season sweep of Central Missouri. First tip from Warrensburg, Mo. is set for 1 p.m.