HAYS, Kan. - The ninth-ranked Fort Hays State women's basketball team used 13-straight points down the stretch to hold off No. 24 Emporia State Saturday afternoon inside Gross Memorial Coliseum, 84-74. The Tigers hit big shots when they needed them the most, finishing 4-for-5 from the floor and 5-of-6 from the line over the final 3-plus minutes to secure the win. Fort Hays State is now 8-0 on the year and 2-0 in MIAA play while the Lady Hornets are now 7-2 overall and 1-1 in league play.
 
In a back-and-forth affair, it was Fort Hays State that had the last big run to come out on top. After trailing by nine late in the third quarter, Emporia State fought back to tie the score early in the final frame. A three-pointer from Taylor Rolfs put the Tigers up by four with just five minutes and change to play, but the duo of Tyra Jones and Jessica Wayne scored on the next three trips down the floor to put the Lady Hornets in front by one, 72-71, with 4:02 on the clock.
 
A pair of free throws gave the Tigers the lead for good with 3:44 to go before five-straight points from Lanie Page stretched the lead to six. Page added a pair of big rebounds, an assist and a block down the stretch to help Fort Hays State knock off ESU at home for the fourth-straight time, matching the longest streak in series history.
 
After an ESU bucket put the visitors up four early in the third quarter, the Tigers roared out to a 17-4 run to go in front by nine midway through the frame. Whitney Randall scored eight points during the stretch, including a pair of strong layups. The Tiger defense came up big during the stretch, forcing five Lady Hornet turnovers and limiting the visitors to 1-of-5 shooting.
 
The Tigers were playing from behind for the majority of the first half thanks to an incredible shooting performance from the Lady Hornets behind the arc. Emporia State opened the game 9-of-16 from deep, drilling 56.3 percent in the opening 20 minutes. The visitors knocked down four of their first five from behind the arc to run out to a 14-7 lead before the first media timeout.
 
The Tigers didn't let Emporia's lights-out shooting faze them, however, responding with 11-straight points to all of a sudden lead by four just over two minutes later. Carly Heim poured in a trio of three-pointers of her own in the opening 10 minutes to help the Tigers keep pace. The teams swapped blows over the next three minutes, trading the leads three times before ESU went in front for the rest of the first half early in the second quarter. FHSU trailed by as many as seven on multiple other occasions, but the Tigers had an answer each time. Kacey Kennett knocked down a pair of jumpers to stop ESU runs before Madison Mittie drilled a critical three-pointer in the waning seconds of the quarter to trim the halftime deficit to two, 44-42.
 
Heim was a consistent force all evening, finishing the game with a season-high 19 points to go along with six rebounds and two assists. Both Tatyana Legette (15 points, 10 rebounds) and Belle Barbieri (11 points, 10 rebounds) posted double-doubles in the victory, the first such occurrence for the Tigers in over a year (Legette and Taylor Rolfs vs Missouri Southern, 11/30/17). Legette picked up her second-straight double-double, becoming the first Tiger to do so since she accomplished the feat as a sophomore in February 2017.
 
Page was close to giving the Tigers a third double-double, totaling nine points, nine rebounds, three steals, two blocks and three assists. Randall chipped in 12 points off the bench, scoring in double figures for the second time this year. Taylor Rolfs dished out a season-high five assists.
 
Despite the early sharp-shooting by the Lady Hornets, FHSU barely edged out the visitors in shooting percentage on the day, 45.6 percent (31-of-68) to 45.0 percent (27-of-60). The Tigers dominated on the boards, outrebounding Emporia State 46-29 including a 19-9 edge on the offensive glass. FHSU capitalized on those offensive rebounds to the tune of 17 second-chance points.
 
The Tigers will take a break from conference action over the remainder of the holiday season before returning to league play in January. Next up in this six-game homestand is a Friday evening contest against Tabor (Dec. 14). First tip is set for 7 p.m.