FHSU Athletics
HAYS, Kan. – Fort Hays State men's soccer turned in a commanding performance on Saturday evening (Oct. 26), overpowering Ouachita Baptist with a lopsided 8-0 victory at FHSU Soccer Stadium. FHSU's relentless attack, clinical finishing, and elite defense propelled the Tigers to a 9-3-2 overall record and 6-2-1 mark in conference play. OBU dropped to 3-10-2 overall and 1-6-1 in the GAC.
The scoring spree began in the 16th minute when Marcos German sent a free kick into the box. After Bastian Carlman made a touch, Elias Ovelar Semeniuk finished with the final touch for the first goal. Fort Hays State kept the pressure high, limiting OBU possessions and converting another opportunity 14 minutes later. Fabian Gylden Svensson sent a well-placed shot into the net off an assist from Bryce Dickerson, giving the Tigers a comfortable 2-0 lead heading into halftime. FHSU outshot OBU 16-1 in the first half alone.
Emerging from the break with the same intensity, Fort Hays State struck again in the 54th minute when Ovelar Semeniuk capitalized on a perfectly headed pass from Tadhg Walsh, extending the lead to 3-0. Less than a minute later, Marcos German displayed his own skill by finding the net off a corner kick from Walsh, pushing the score to 4-0. Walsh continued his strong performance in the 58th minute, adding a goal to his two assists with a smooth finish set up by German.
Ovelar Semeniuk completed the second hat trick by a Tiger this season in the 66th minute off a setup from Dimitry Tchantcheu, stretching the lead to 6-0. He tied the most goals scored in a match this season, matching Carlman's three against Maryville earlier this season.
Graduate student Chris Rios-Cruz joined the scoring parade in the 80th minute by successfully executing a penalty kick. In the final minutes, Fort Hays rounded out the scoring when Lucas Garay found the back of the net on a touch right in front of a diving keeper from a precise pass by Pieter Hengeveld.
The Tigers outshot Ouachita Baptist by a substantial 30-4 margin, with 18 shots on target. Goalkeeper Wouter Van der Borch made a confident start, maintaining a clean sheet in his 61 minutes on the field, while Ben Dixon provided steady backup to preserve the shutout in the final stretch. Fort Hays State's defense remained resilient, limiting Ouachita Baptist to just one shot on goal.
The Tigers will take a seven-match unbeaten streak on the road next week to face Northeastern State on Thursday and Rogers State on Saturday (Nov. 2). For the time being, FHSU jumped into first place in the GAC standings with the win.