FHSU Athletics
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – The Fort Hays State volleyball team opened the 2024 season with a split on day one of the Mountain Lion Classic, knocking off UMary in five sets before falling to tournament host Colorado-Colorado Springs in four sets on Friday.
Four separate Tigers racked up at least 20 points across the two matches, with Gracie Rains leading the pack with 28 kills. Grace Schmedding added 22 kills and three service aces in nine sets, while Ashlyn Reeves tallied 19 kills and eight blocks and Taytum Lovesee contributed 15 kills and 10 blocks.
The Tigers will wrap up the weekend in Colorado on Saturday (Sept. 7) when they take on Cameron at 2:30 p.m. (1:30 p.m. MT) before returning to Hays to host the 2024 Tiger Classic September 13-14.
Fort Hays State 3, UMary 2 (25-23, 25-12, 17-25, 20-25, 15-13)
The season opened up with a five-set battle against the Marauders of UMary, with the Tigers taking the first two frames before holding on to clinch the match in a tight fifth set.
The teams jostled back-and-forth in the opening set, leading to nine ties and five lead changes. The final lead change came when the Tigers stormed back from a 20-18 deficit to score six points in a row to reach set point. Reeves opened the run with a kill before back-to-back Marauder errors gave the Tigers the lead. Schmedding made it 22-20 with a kill followed by another UMary miscue. Reeves then added another kill to reach set point before Schmedding eventually finished things off with a team-leading third kill of the set.
The Tigers rode that momentum into the second set, scoring the first four points to never fall behind in a 25-12 win. Fort Hays State took a 2-0 lead in the match after scoring the final seven points of the set, capped off by a kill from Reeves.
The Marauders clawed back with a 25-17 victory in the third set before taking the fourth set 25-20 thanks to an attack percentage of .414 in the frame. UMary then took an early 3-2 lead in the final set before the Tigers scored five-straight points to take the lead for good. Schmedding tied the fifth set at three with a kill before Rains and Lovesee each added two kills to push the lead to four. The Tigers led by as many as six later in the frame, but UMary managed to close within 14-13 before Schmedding secured the victory with her 12th kill of the contest.
Rains led the team with 15 kills and added two block assists. Schmedding totaled 12 kills, 12 digs and three service aces in her first collegiate contest, while Reeves tallied 11 kills and three blocks (one solo). Caiya Stucky dished out 47 assists in the win, adding three service aces, two blocks and six kills. Libero Kirsten Evans led the match with 17 digs.
UC-Colorado Springs 3, Fort Hays State 1 (18-25, 26-24, 20-25, 19-25)
The Tigers capped off the day with a four-set defeat against UC-Colorado Springs. FHSU dropped the opening set 25-18 before grinding out a 26-24 win in set two to even things up. The Mountain Lions regained control the rest of the way, taking the third set 25-20 and the fourth set 25-19 to seal the win.
Fort Hays State led midway through the first set, 10-9, before a big UCCS run gave the home team the lead for good in that set. The Tigers then went up 10-5 early in the second set, but the Mountain Lions scored six of the next seven points to level the score at 11. The teams traded blows the rest of the way, with neither side leading by more than three the rest of the way. UCCS reached set point first, leading 24-23, but the Tigers scored the final three points to take the frame.
The Mountain Lions bounced back in the third set, taking the lead for good after a tie at 5-5. Fort Hays State then led 13-12 midway through the fourth frame, but the home team scored nine of the next 11 points to take a 21-15 lead. The Tigers were able to close within four, 23-19, before UCCS put things away.
Rains totaled a team-high 13 kills and again added two blocks. Schmedding recorded 10 kills, five digs and two blocks. Stucky dished out 38 assists and added nine digs.