HAYS, Kan. - A historic first quarter propelled the Fort Hays State women's basketball team to an 81-51 victory against Colorado-Colorado Springs Friday evening (Nov. 17). The Tigers seemingly could not miss in the opening 10 minutes, scoring an MIAA-record 36 points in the frame on a blistering 61.9 percent shooting effort (13-of-21). Fort Hays State moves to 3-0 on the year, while the Mountain Lions dip to 0-3 overall.
The Tigers cooled off down the stretch, finishing the game with a 40.3 shooting percentage (27-of-67) while limiting UCCS to a 28.6 percent outing (18-of-63). The Fort Hays State defense was just as impressive, forcing 26 turnovers and making 16 steals, both season-highs. The teams were evenly matched on the boards, with UCCS holding a slim 45-42 margin in rebounds.
Four Tigers scored in double figures, the first such occurrence since the middle of last season (1/26/17, vs Lincoln).
Whitney Clampitt drained a trio of 3-pointers en route to 19 points, the most for a freshman since 2013 (Jill Faxon 21 pts vs Oklahoma-Panhandle State, 11/16/13).
Tatyana Legette also added 19 points, including 12 points on 5-of-5 shooting in the opening frame, to go along with eight rebounds and two blocks.
Taylor Rolfs tallied 15 points with
Kacey Kennett adding 14. Other leaders included
Carly Heim dishing out a career-high six assists and
Emma Stroyan's three blocks.
The Mountain Lions led for all of 23 seconds early in the contest before the Tigers got things rolling. The Tigers were incredibly efficient in the opening quarter, scoring on 16 of their 21 possessions. UCCS, meanwhile, turned the ball over 10 times in the opening frame. Rolfs knocked down all her 3-pointers in the opening frame, adding two free throws to score 11 points in the first 10 minutes. Clampitt drained 3-of-3 shots in the quarter, good for eight points. Fort Hays State used a 27-4 run to build a 25-point lead before UCCS hit a shot at the buzzer, making the score 36-13 after one quarter of play.
Things started to level out in the second period, with both teams knocking down just five shots. The Mountain Lions were just as sloppy with the ball, turning the ball over 18 times before halftime. The Tigers went on another 12-0 run early in the quarter to stretch the lead as high as 32 points, 48-16. FHSU went ice cold after knocking down 17-of-25 shots from the floor over the first 13 minutes of action, making just 1-of-15 attempts over the final seven minutes of the half.
Neither side could get much going out of the locker room, with the teams combining for just five field goals in the third quarter. UCCS was held without a field goal for more than six and a half minutes before the Mountain Lions knocked down a three just before the buzzer sounded, making the score 62-35 after three periods.
Back-to-back buckets from Clampitt helped the Tigers to an 11-0 run at the start of the fourth quarter, building the lead to a game-high 36 points, 73-37. The Tigers made just one field goal in the final five minutes, but the Mountain Lions could claw no closer than 28 points down.
Fort Hays State will return to the court Saturday (Nov. 18), facing off with Newman at 4 p.m.
