FHSU Athletics
HAYS, Kan. - The Fort Hays State volleyball team held serve with 3rd-ranked Nebraska-Kearney early on Tuesday evening, winning the first set before the undefeated Lopers rallied back to win the match in four, 27-25, 17-25, 22-25, 16-25. The Tigers' (9-5, 1-4 MIAA) first-set victory was just the third set UNK (17-0, 5-0 MIAA) has lost this season.
The Tigers came out on a mission in the first set, posting an attack percentage of .317 with 16 kills and three errors on 41 attempts. Fort Hays State jumped out to an early four-point lead before the Lopers rallied to tie the score at 12. The Tigers continued to lead until UNK scored three in a row to go in front, 18-17.
FHSU later trailed 21-18 before going on a 5-1 run to go back on top. A combo block from Taytum Lovesee and Claire Olson tied the score at 22 before Lovesee teamed up with Grace Schmedding to give the Tigers the lead. The visitors answered by scoring the next two points to reach set point, but a kill from Olson kept the Tigers alive. The Black and Gold then scored three in a row on two Loper errors and a Schmedding kill to secure the set, 27-25.
After totaling five kills on six attempts in the first set, Olson duplicated that effort in the second frame, posting a swing rate of .833 through the first two sets (10-0-12). The teams went back-and-forth for much of the second frame that included 11 ties and six lead changes. Neither side led by more than two until a late Loper run turned a 16-16 tie into a 25-17 win.
Nebraska-Kearney tried to pull away in the third set, leading by as many as six, 21-15, before the home team came storming back. Back-to-back kills from Gracie Rains helped FHSU close within two, but the Lopers punched back with two points to stretch the lead back to six. The Tigers then used a 5-1 run to close within two, including kills from Lovesee and Olson and a trio of blocks from a combination of Lovesee, Olson and Rains. After a Lovesee solo block trimmed the deficit to 24-22, the Lopers finished off the frame with a kill.
The Tigers jumped in front again in the fourth set, scoring six-straight points to go in front, 11-5. Olson opened the run with a kill before the FHSU front line of defense recorded three blocks over the next four rallies. Lovesee and Schmedding teamed up for two of the rejections, with Lovesee going up with Olson for the third. UNK answered back by scoring the next eight points, taking the lead for good before winning the frame, 25-16.Fort Hays State forced the Lopers into 27 errors, their most in a match in nearly two years (33 errors at NWMSU, 10/29/22). The Tigers finished the match with a swing rate of .185 (50-22-151), the second-highest attack rate recorded by a Loper opponent this season.
The Tiger defense teamed up for 15 total blocks, the most blocks by a team against the Lopers this year. Lovesee totaled 11 blocks, tying the program's rally scoring era record of total blocks in a four-set match and one off the single game record. The redshirt-freshman also chipped in six kills.
Olson finished the match without an error, posting an attack percentage of .500 with 13 kills on 26 attempts. She added six blocks on defense. Caiya Stucky, Ashlyn Reeves and Schmedding all had three blocks each.Rains tied for the team lead with 13 kills alongside two blocks, while Schmedding chipped in 10 kills, six digs and two service aces. Kirsten Evans racked up a game-high 21 digs, while Stucky dished out 40 assists.
UP NEXT
The Tigers will wrap up a five-match homestand over the weekend when they host Washburn on Friday (Oct. 11, 6 p.m.) and Emporia State on Saturday (Oct. 12, 2 p.m.).