Fort Hays State used an early burst to knock off No. 22 Missouri Southern, 89-70, on Saturday (Jan. 3), moving its current win streak to 10 games.
 
FHSU (11-1, 4-0 MIAA) stormed out of the games with a 20-2 straight, scoring 18 unanswered before MSSU close the run with its first field goal of the game at 11:36.  The Tigers used a healthy dose of Kate Lehman during the opening burst, as the senior had 16 points before the 10-minute mark. 
 
After a three-pointer from Paige Lunsford put the Tigers up 20 (25-5) at 9:51, MSSU woke up to close the game to 14 (28-14) with a 9-3 run of its own.
 
Over the half's final seven minutes, FHSU once again pushed the lead back over 20, taking its largest lead of the half (23) off a three-pointer from Nikola Kacperska with 31 seconds to go (48-25).  The teams traded a pair of free throws to close the half at 50-27
 
FHSU hit the 50-point barrier in the first half for the third time this year, and are now 7-0 when scoring over 40 in the first half.
 
Out of the break, MSSU looked to make it a game with a 14-4 run (including 11 unanswered) in the first seven minutes, cutting the lead to 13 (54-41).  Kate Lehman's free throw at 13:17, though, broke the run and set things up for back-and-forth play to close the game.
 
Lehman just missed a double-double, scoring 31 points (tying her season-high) with nine rebounds and two blocks on the day.  Chelsea Mason found her way into double-digits as well, scoring 15 points to go with three steals and a career-high four assists. 
 
Kacperska had seven assists for the second time in three games, tying her career-high while scoring eight points with a 2-of-2 effort from beyond the arc.  Lunsford matched Kacperska with eight points, while Keriann Shaw (eight rebounds) and Jill Faxon each had seven points.
 
The 10 straight wins is tied for the third longest streak in program history.  FHSU has won 10 consecutive games seven times since 1974-75, with the two longer streaks (20 and 14) occurring during the 1990-91 NAIA National Championship season.
 
FHSU is now 2-1 against ranked opponents on the year, moving the team to 15-17 all-time versus ranked opponents at home.
 
FHSU remains in Hays to take on Southwest Baptist on Monday, Jan. 5.  Tipoff in the conference game is set for 5:30 p.m.