FHSU Athletics
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Fort Hays State will have two former student-athletes inducted into the MIAA Hall of Fame on Monday, June 2, 2025. Kate (Lehman) Bremerman (women's basketball) and Darcie (Schmitz) Riordan (women's track and field) will be the second and third individuals from Fort Hays State to go into the MIAA Hall of Fame. Lehman competed in women's basketball at FHSU from 2011-2015, while Schmitz competed in track and field from 2009-2011.
Both Lehman and Schmitz were inducted into the FHSU Tiger Sports Hall of Fame in 2024, which made them eligible for the MIAA Hall of Fame ballot. The MIAA has a rule that individuals must be part of an institution's Hall of Fame before being eligible for the MIAA Hall of Fame. Lehman and Schmitz are part of a class of 11 individuals who will be inducted into the MIAA Hall of Fame this year. They will join Maddie Holub (softball 2010-2013) as Fort Hays State's members of the MIAA Hall of Fame. Fort Hays State's history with the conference began in 2006-07.
MIAA Hall of Fame Induction Class
Kathy Anderson – Central Missouri Administrator, Allen Barbre – Missouri Southern Football, Kate (Lehman) Bremerman – Fort Hays State Women's Basketball, John Brown – Pittsburg State Football, Mark Burrell – Central Missouri Wrestling, Ryan Helsley – Northeastern State Baseball, Kiara Jones – Pittsburg State Men's Track and Field, Nikki (Llewellyn) Nill – Missouri Southern Women's Soccer, Darcie (Schmitz) Riordan – Fort Hays State Women's Track and Field, Dane Simoneau – Washburn Football, LEGACY – Shelly Lundien, Missouri Southern Softball.
Kate (Lehman) Bremerman – Women's Basketball (2011-2015)
A native of Newton, Kansas, Kate Lehman was the MIAA Player of the Year in her senior season of 2014-15, while also earning BennettRank.com National Player of the Year honors. She was an All-America performer in both the 2013-14 season and 2014-15 season, earning the distinction both years from the WBCA and Division II Bulletin and once from Daktronics and BennettRank.com. She was a four-time All-MIAA selection, earning first-team honors each of her last three seasons, and was twice an MIAA All-Tournament Team selection (2013, 2015). She was a Daktronics All-Central Region selection three-straight years (2013, 2014, 2015). Lehman was also named to the MIAA All-Defensive Team all four years and was the conference's Defensive Player of the Year for three-straight years (2013, 2014, 2015).
Lehman set FHSU and MIAA career records for blocked shots and still firmly holds the record today. She absolutely shattered both records by finishing her career with an astounding 515. It was 349 more than the previous record set at FHSU and she doubled the previous MIAA record of 252 set by Esmary Vargas-Sanchez of Emporia State. She broke the FHSU record for blocks during her sophomore season and the MIAA record during her junior season. She has the third-most blocked shots in NCAA Division II history, only behind LaKisha Phifer of St. Paul's and Riley Fitzwater of Concord, who share the record with 533. Lehman joins those two as the only three players in NCAA Division II history with 500 or more blocked shots. Her 5.3 blocks per game average as a junior in 2013-14 still stands as an NCAA Division II record for highest average during a player's junior year. Lehman's 4.3 blocked shots per game average ranks fourth-best in NCAA Division II history.
Lehman also broke the FHSU career record for rebounds with 1,109. She held the record until 2025, when Katie Wagner DeGarmo passed the mark with 1,248. With 1,917 career points, Lehman was the only basketball player at FHSU to record at least 1,000 points and 1,000 rebounds in a career, until DeGarmo accomplished the feat as well during the 2024-25 season. The 1,109 rebounds ranked third on the MIAA career list and the 1,917 points ranked second in FHSU history when Lehman completed her career.
Lehman had 55 double-doubles in her career, which is among the top 25 all-time in NCAA Division II, and she had three triple-doubles in points, rebounds, and blocks, which is tied for sixth-most in a career in NCAA Division II history.
Lehman also was tremendous in the classroom at FHSU. She was a CoSIDA Academic All-America First Team selection in 2015. She also garnered MIAA Scholar-Athlete honors four times and was a four-time member of the MIAA Academic Honor Roll. Lehman was Fort Hays State's first-ever winner of the Ken B. Jones Award, given to the top male and female student-athletes in the MIAA which combines athletic, academic, and service accomplishments of an individual.
Darcie (Schmitz) Riordan – Women's Track and Field (2009-2011)
A native of Baileyville, Kansas, Darcie Schmitz was a seven-time All-America performer overall and an individual national champion at Fort Hays State in track and field, specializing in the long jump and triple jump. She was a four-time All-America performer for outdoor track and field and a three-time All-America performer for indoor track and field. Schmitz was the MIAA Outdoor Champion in both the long jump and triple jump in 2011 and was a seven-time All-MIAA performer overall (top-3 finisher). She competed outdoor at FHSU in 2009 and 2011, and competed indoor in 2010 and 2011.
Schmitz was the 2010 NCAA Division II Indoor National Champion in the long jump and was national runner-up in the triple jump that same season. She still owns both the indoor and outdoor records in long jump and triple jump at FHSU.
Schmitz's indoor long jump record of 19 feet, 9.5 inches won her the indoor national title in 2010. Her best outdoor long jump mark was 19 feet, 11 inches set at the 2009 NCAA Outdoor Championships when she finished fourth. She set the FHSU triple jump record for both outdoor and indoor at 41 feet, 1 inch. Her outdoor record set a new MIAA Outdoor Championship meet record in 2011.
Schmitz was also top notch academically, earning CoSIDA Academic All-America First Team selections twice (2010 and 2011). She spent her first two years of college at Cloud County (Kan.) Community College, where she was an All-America performer and junior college Academic All-America selection.