FHSU Athletics
DENTON, Texas - The Fort Hays State volleyball team wrapped up its non-conference schedule Saturday with one win and one loss at the Denton Volleyfest. The Tigers made quick work of Ouachita Baptist in the first match of the day before falling in four sets against Northwestern Oklahoma State in the weekend finale.
Mykah Eshbaugh recorded 24 kills on the day, including 15 against NWOSU, while Jaden Daffer led the way with 49 digs across the seven sets. Morgan Christiansen compiled six blocks, including four solo blocks, and Jaida Felix paced the team with 43 assists.
The Tigers will open conference play next weekend on the road when they face off with Washburn on Friday (Sept. 9, 6 p.m.) and Emporia State on Saturday (Sept. 10, 3 p.m.).
Fort Hays State 3, Ouachita Baptist 0 (25-21, 26-24, 25-22)
Fort Hays State played suffocating defense throughout the opening match of the day, limiting Ouachita Baptist to a .050 attack percentage thanks to 10 blocks and 64 digs. The teams traded the lead several times early in the first set before FHSU rattled off four-consecutive points to take the lead for good. Mykah Eshbaugh opened the run with a kill before Riley Tinder added back-to-back kills.
The black and gold Tigers led by as many as five midway through the second set before Ouachita Baptist scored seven in a row to go up 19-17. Fort Hays State later scored five in a row to regain the lead at 23-21. Kills from Emily Ellis and Gracie Rains opened the rally before a block from Caiya Stucky put the Tigers in front. Tinder followed with a service ace to cap off the run and Jaida Felix added a service ace just a few rallies later to give the Tigers a 26-24 win.
Fort Hays State put things away in the third set with a .184 attack percentage and 13 kills. The Tigers turned a 14-14 tie into a big lead with a 9-3 run before securing the match with a 25-22 win.
Rains tallied 12 kills to lead the team, with Eshbaugh adding nine kills and two blocks and Tinder contributing eight kills and eight digs. Felix totaled 18 assists and eight digs, while Elysia Glowacz racked up 17 assists and five digs. Jaden Daffer led the team with 21 digs and Brooke Hyland totaled 14 digs.
Northwestern Oklahoma State 3, Fort Hays State 1 (21-25, 15-25, 25-17, 20-25)
Fort Hays State used a dominant third set to extend the match against Northwestern Oklahoma State, but efficient offense from the Rangers helped them take the weekend finale in four sets. The teams traded the lead several times in the opening set before NWOSU pulled away, winning 25-21. The Rangers took care of business early in the second set, winning 25-15, before the Tiger offense came alive in a 25-17 third-set win.
Fort Hays State posted an attack percentage of .455 in the third stanza, totaling 19 kills and just four errors on 33 swings. Gracie Rains totaled five kills in that set, while Morgan Christiansen, Mykah Eshbaugh and Claire Olson all had four kills. The Rangers bounced back in the fourth set, however, pulling away late to turn a 19-19 tie into a 25-20 win.
Eshbaugh led the Tigers with 15 kills while adding two aces, one block and 10 digs for her first career double-double. Christiansen added eight kills, four blocks and five digs. Libero Jaden Daffer totaled 28 digs, while Jaida Felix (25 assists) and Elysia Glowacz (21 digs) combined for 46 of the 49 assists.