FHSU Athletics
Fort Hays State Women's Basketball
at Kansas
Wednesday, October 29, 2025 • 6:30 p.m.
Lawrence, Kan. • Allen Fieldhouse
Admission to the game is FREE
Radio: KJLS (103.3) CLICK HERE TO LISTEN
The Fort Hays State women's basketball team will open the 2025-26 preseason with an exhibition matchup against the University of Kansas Wednesday evening (Oct. 29) in Lawrence, Kan., with the opening tip slated for 6:30 p.m. inside historic Allen Fieldhouse.
For fans planning to make the drive to Lawrence, there is no admission charge for the women's game. Live video will be available with a subscription to ESPN+, while radio coverage with voice of the Tigers Gerard Wellbrock will be available on KJLS 103.3 and online here. Live stats will also be available online here.
Roster Report
- Fort Hays State's roster includes seven returners and six newcomers, including five freshmen and one transfer.
- This year's squad includes players from seven different states, including five from Kansas, three from Colorado and one each from Iowa, Missouri, Nebraska, North Carolina and Texas.
- There are three seniors, two juniors, three sophomores and five freshmen on the squad this year.
- The Tigers return two All-MIAA honorable mention selections in Brooke Loewe and Talexa Weeter.
- Loewe led all Division II with 233 assists last season, breaking FHSU's single-season assists record in the process. She also averaged 7.5 points per game while leading the Tigers with an 80.0 percent free throw percentage.
- Weeter had a standout sophomore campaign, averaging 14.6 points and 6.0 rebounds per contest. She hit 53.0 percent from the floor on the year and scored in double figures 25 times, including nine games with 20 or more points. The Goodland, Kan. native tallied 35 points in an MIAA Tournament quarterfinal matchup against UCM, the most points scored by a Tiger last season.
- Ellie Stearns returns for her senior season as the most experienced player in a Tiger uniform, playing in 98 contests over her first three seasons. The Andover, Kan. native hit a team-best 35 3-pointers last season, giving her 90 career makes from behind the arc.
- Maddy Powell played in 25 games as a true freshman last season, averaging 12.0 minutes per game and dishing out 40 assists.
- Avery Lowe scored 2.1 points and grabbed 1.2 rebounds per game in 19 appearances last season as a redshirt freshman.
- Callie Ott appeared in 18 contests as a true freshman in 2024-25, shooting 50.0 percent from behind the 3-point line and 83.3 percent from the charity stripe.
- Sarah Lawless saw action in 15 games last year as a junior transfer, racking up 11 points, eight rebounds and two blocks. She led the team in blocks in one game. The Shawnee, Kan. native is the first Tiger in history to wear No. 2.
- Newcomers include junior transfer TiAna Davis and freshmen Olivia Mortensen, Mikayla Pilley, Kaitlin Schumann, Izzy Spagnoletti and Brittan Zeka.
Head coach Talia Kahrs
- Talia Kahrs enters her third season as head coach at Fort Hays State University in 2025-26.
- She has a career record of 53-13, winning more than 80 percent of the time.
- Kahrs has been a part of Tiger basketball for 18 years, including three as head coach, 11 as an assistant coach, one as a student assistant and three as a player.
- She has helped 49 players earn All-MIAA status as a head coach/assistant and has helped the Tigers to 346 wins in her time on the coaching staff.
- The Tryon, Neb. native has helped the Tigers to 14-consecutive 20-win seasons, nine NCAA DII Central Regional berths and six MIAA trophies.
20 Wins Now the Norm
- Fort Hays State has now reached the 20-win plateau in each of the last 14 seasons, extending the longest active streak of 20-win seasons in Division II. FHSU's streak is tied for the fifth-longest active streak of 20-win seasons across all NCAA Divisions.
- FHSU reached the 20-win plateau just eight times over the first 42 years of the program before the current streak began in 2011-12, including no more than two consecutive 20-win campaigns during that time.
- The next-best active streak of 20-win seasons in the MIAA is four (MWSU), while the next-best streak in DII is Drury with 12.
- Only four DI programs have longer active stretches of 20-win seasons, including UConn (32), Baylor (25), Florida Gulf Coast (21) and Louisville (15). Fort Hays State's run of 14-straight 20-win seasons is tied with South Carolina and South Dakota State for sixth-best in all NCAA women's basketball.
Last Meeting with KU
- Fort Hays State forced overtime in its last trip to Allen Fieldhouse before KU won 90-83 in overtime on October 28, 2018.
- The Tigers' 83 points were the most KU has ever allowed in an exhibition game and are the most FHSU has ever scored against the Jayhawks (24 games, exhibition and regular season).
- FHSU led by as many as four in the first half, but went into the locker room down eight, 44-36.
- The Tigers trailed by as many as nine in the fourth quarter, but battled back before Taylor Rolfs hit a buzzer beater from the right wing to tie the game at 79 and send things to OT.
- Rolfs hit another 3-pointer in OT to give FHSU an 82-81 lead with 3:53 to play, but the Jayhawks finished the game on a 9-1 run to avoid the upset.
- Lanie Page led all scorers with 21 points thanks to four 3-pointers, while Rolfs scored 14. Belle Barbieri totaled 12 points and eight rebounds.
- Austin Richardson led the Jayhawks with 17 points and 10 rebounds, while freshman Brooklyn Mitchell added 17 points off the bench.
Series History
- The Tigers and Jayhawks played 14 times in the regular season in the 1970's, splitting the all-time series 7-7. Fort Hays State beat KU twice in Lawrence, once in the 1971-72 season and again in the 1973-74 season.
- This is the 11th exhibition meeting between the two teams, with Kansas winning all 10 previous preseason matchups.
- The Jayhawks have won 13 in a row overall.
Scouting the Jayhawks
- The Jayhawks return their top six scorers from last year's squad that turned in a record of 16-14.
- S'Mya Nichols is the top returner after earning WBCA honorable mention All-America status as a sophomore last season. The Overland Park, Kan. native has averaged 16.9 points per game in her two-year career at KU.
- KU was picked sixth in this year's Big 12 Presason Poll, while Nichols was picked to the Preseason All-Big 12 team.
- Brandon Schneider enters his 11th season as head coach at KU with a record of 143-163 as a Jayhawk. The former Emporia State head coach is entering his 28th year as a collegiate head coach with a lifetime record of 544-301.
Looking Ahead
- Fort Hays State will open the regular season at the Central Region Showcase in St. Joseph, Mo. for a third year in a row when the Tigers take on Concordia-St. Paul on Friday, November 14 beginning at 5 p.m.
- The Tigers will play their first eight games away from home before hosting Pittsburg State in a non-conference matchup for the first home game of the season on Saturday, December 13.