FHSU Athletics
GOLDEN, Colo. - The Fort Hays State volleyball team wrapped up the 2023 Oredigger Classic with a split on Saturday (Sept. 1), defeating Colorado Christian in three sets before dropping a hard-fought battle in five sets against San Francisco State.
Claire Olson led the team with 20 kills on the day, while Emily Ellis picked up a team-high eight blocks across the two matches. Caiya Stucky distributed 72 assists with libero Brooke Hyland totaling 31 digs in seven sets, averaging 4.4 per frame.
The Tigers will now return to Hays where they will make their home debut on Wednesday (Sept. 6) against Kansas Wesleyan beginning at 7 p.m. before hosting the 2023 Tiger Classic next Friday and Saturday (Sept. 8-9).
Fort Hays State 3, Colorado Christian 0 (25-15, 25-17, 25-20)
Fort Hays State dominated the entirety of the first match of the day, trailing only once when it was 3-2 in the opening set. The Tigers scored 10 of the next 11 points to take complete control. The lead later ballooned to 14, 23-9, following a block from Ellis and Stucky before Stucky finished off the 25-15 win with her second kill of the day.
The Tigers scored the first four points in the second set before the Cougars bounced back to tie things up as late as 10-10. Fort Hays State responded by scoring five in a row to regain control before Andressa Ribeiro Soares secured a 25-17 win. Ellis helped the Tigers finish off the sweep with four kills on six attempts in the third set.
The Tigers posted an attack percentage of .209 while nine FHSU blocks helped limit the Cougars to a swing rate below zero, -.021. Riley Tinder recorded seven kills in the win, while Ellis and Olson both had six. Ashlyn Reeves totaled five blocks against the Cougars, including a pair of solo blocks.
San Francisco State 3, Fort Hays State 2 (25-23, 17-25, 19-25, 25-16, 13-15)
The Tigers and Gators went back and forth all evening, with FHSU dominating the first and fourth sets and SFSU taking care of business in the second and third frames. The final set was close until the final serve, with neither team leading by two points for the entirety of the set.
Fort Hays State used an efficient offensive attack to win the opening set, posting an attack percentage of .364 while recording only five errors. The Gators bounced back with 20 kills and just one error in the second set to tie things up at one.
The Tigers led 8-6 early in the third set before an 8-2 Gator run put San Francisco State on top by four, 14-10. The teams traded points the rest of the way, with the Gators finishing off a 25-19 win to take a 2-1 lead in the match.
Fort Hays State fell behind early in the fourth set but quickly responded, turning a 5-2 deficit into a 13-8 lead thanks to an 11-3 run. The Tigers maintained control the rest of the way, leading by as many as nine en route to a 25-16 win. Ellis helped the Tigers stay alive, recording six kills on 10 swings in the fourth set. The Tigers as a whole recorded just two attack errors in the set.
Neither side was able to pull away in the final set. FHSU's best chance came midway through the frame when the Tigers scored four in a row to turn a two-point deficit into a two-point lead, but the Gators bounced right back to level the score at 7-7. FHSU led as late as 8-7 before San Francisco State scored four of the next five to take an 11-9 lead. A kill from Reeves and a solo block from Gracie Rains helped the Tigers tie things up at 13, but two more Gator points put an end to the match.
The Tigers posted an attack percentage of .264 compared to a swing rate of .270 for the Gators. FHSU recorded two more blocks than its opponent, 7-5, while the Tigers also held a 7-6 edge in service aces.
Olson had 14 kills in the loss, with Rains chipping in 13 and Ellis contributing 12. Ellis had five blocks (one solo), while Stucky totaled 46 assists, three kills, two blocks and two service aces.