Box Score

In a game that saw six lead changes and six ties, Fort Hays State women's basketball pulled away late to claim a 72-62 victory against Central Oklahoma on Wednesday (Feb. 26) evening in Hays, Kan.
 
FHSU (18-7, 11-7 MIAA) stayed alive for a first-round bye with the win, moving into a tie for fifth in the conference standings with Washburn.  With one game to go in its regular season, FHSU is one-half game behind Missouri Southern for fourth place.  The top four seeds earn an automatic first-round bye to Kansas City, Mo., in the MIAA Championships.
 
Kate Lehman posted her sixth consecutive double-double, finishing with 16 points and 13 rebounds, adding six blocks as well.  Lehman moved into ninth all-time in NCAA Division II career blocks with 349 for her career.  Lehman also tied her career-high with five assists.
 
Katelyn Edwards returned to double-digit scoring in the win, leading the team with 19 points in 30 minutes played.  Edwards was second on the team with seven rebounds.
 
Beth Bohuslavsky's five assists were tied for the team lead, as she added eight points and six rebounds, just ahead of Keriann Shaw, who had seven points and six rebounds (including four offensive boards).
 
Fort Hays State jumped out to a 5-0 lead just over a minute into the game, but UCO answered with an 8-2 run of its own to take the lead (8-7) with 15:37 left in the game.  A 3-pointer from Chelsea Mason on the next possession put the Tigers back in control for the time being.
 
Tied at 12 inside 15 minutes, a technical foul on UCO's Julia Mason sent Jill Faxon to the line, where she was 2-for-2 to put FHSU ahead, 14-12.
 
Later in the half, down 25-21, a back door pass from Lehman to Shaw for a layup sparked a 7-3 run for FHSU that tied the game, 28-28 with 5:06 remaining.  Shaw had five points for the Tigers in that span. 
 
UCO again climbed out to a lead, 31-28, but back-to-back layups from Edwards started a 6-3 run that tied it, 34-34 just over the two-minute mark.  Inside the final minute, UCO outscored the Tigers, 5-2 to lead by three (39-36) at the half.  A layup from Lehman with 26 seconds left was the final score of the half. 
 
The Bronchos shot 58.3 (7-of-12) from 3-point range in the first half, while the Tigers hit just one jumper from long range.
 
After a jumper from UCO in the opening 30 seconds of the final frame, Edwards laid it in at 19:21 to spark a 16-0 run for Fort Hays State that lasted over seven minutes.  Edwards had the first six points of the burst (and eight total points) that put FHSU in control, 52-41.  UCO's Brittney Morgan hit a 3-pointer at 11:48 to stop the run.
 
UCO, however, stormed back from that 11-point deficit with a 19-8 run to tie the game at 60 with 6:15 left.  Taylor Chandler's first 3-pointer of the game followed in timely fashion, giving FHSU back the lead, 63-60.
 
After a jumper from Morgan brought UCO back within one (63-62), the Tigers started a 10-0 run over the final 4:25 to clinch the victory.