FHSU Athletics
CLAREMORE, Okla. - The 11th-ranked Fort Hays State women's basketball team shook off a slow start to pick up another double-digit win on Thursday, defeating Rogers State on the road 60-50. The Tigers improve to 15-2 overall and 6-2 in league play with the win, while the Hillcats are now 7-11 overall and 1-8 in league action.
Katie DeGarmo finished the night with a game-high 18 points, putting her over the 2,000-point plateau for her career. The Maize, Kan. native is just the second player to reach that milestone in program history.
Both teams struggled to light up the scoreboard in the first quarter, with the squads combining to hit just four field goals in the first 10 minutes. FHSU hit three of those, with the Tiger defense holding Rogers State to 1-of-11 shooting while creating seven turnovers in the opening frame.
After leading 9-5 at the end of the first quarter, tied for FHSU's lowest-scoring quarter in a game this season, the Tigers started to get things to fall in the second stanza. DeGarmo, Talexa Weeter and Olivia Hollenbeck all hit a pair of shots in the quarter, helping the Tigers shoot 53.8 percent (7-of-13) after shooting just 23.1 percent (3-of-13) in the opening quarter.
The lead changed hands four times in the first half, with neither side leading by more than four points. The Hillcats led with two minutes to go before halftime, but a jumper from DeGarmo gave the Tigers the lead for good with 1:49 left in the second. FHSU later went into the locker room up 27-23 when Weeter drilled a 3-pointer in the final minute of the half.
Rogers State hung around over the first five minutes of the second half, with the Hillcats trimming the deficit to two points on three separate occasions. Fort Hays State took control after the media timeout, however, with the Tigers finishing the frame on a 10-0 lead to push the lead to 43-31.
DeGarmo helped push the Tigers to the finish line in the fourth quarter, totaling 12 of her game-high 18 points in the final frame after hitting all five of her field goal attempts. In fact, the graduate student finished the game with seven-consecutive made shots after missing her first six from the floor.
Weeter contributed 17 points, two steals and two blocks, while Hollenbeck totaled 12 points, five rebounds, three assists, two steals and one block. Kate Dilsaver hit both of her 3-point attempts, helping the senior finish the night with 10 points. Dilsaver and DeGarmo tied for the team lead with four assists, while DeGarmo collected a team-high eight rebounds.
Rogers State outrebounded the Tigers by six, 34-28, just the second time FHSU has been outrebounded this season. The teams combined for 15 offensive rebounds, including 12 by the Tigers, however neither squad was able to record a second chance point.
After hitting just 23.1 percent (3-of-13) from the floor in the opening quarter, the Tigers proceeded to knock down 52.7 percent (19-of-36) over the next 30 minutes to finish the day shooting 44.9 percent (22-of-49). The Tiger defense held Rogers State to a season-low 27.9 percent shooting (17-of-61) and created 20 turnovers.
UP NEXT
Fort Hays State's four-game road trip continues on Saturday, January 25 when the Tigers travel to Edmond, Okla. to take on Central Oklahoma beginning at 1:30 p.m. FHSU will then play road games at Washburn and Central Missouri next weekend before returning home on Thursday, February 6 to host Northeastern State