The Fort Hays State women's basketball team will open postseason play on Thursday (March 1) when the Tigers take on Emporia State in the quarterfinals of the 2018 MIAA Women's Basketball Championship. First tip is set for noon inside historic Municipal Auditorium in Kansas City, Mo.
 
The Tigers qualified for the tournament as the No. 3 seed, finishing the regular season 23-5 overall and 14-5 in league play. Emporia State (17-10, 11-8 MIAA) is the No. 6 seed in the tournament, advancing to KC after defeating Northeastern State on Monday, 72-62.
 
This will be the third meeting between the Tigers and Lady Hornets this season, with the home team coming away victorious in the previous two contests. Both times the home team trailed by double figures in the first half before rallying to win. This is the third time in the last four years FHSU will take on ESU in the conference tournament.
 
The Tigers trail the all-time series with Emporia State, 49-32, including a 4-2 advantage in neutral site contests for the Lady Hornets. ESU is 3-0 against FHSU in the MIAA Tournament. Hobson is 6-16 against the Lady Hornets, including an 0-4 mark against Emporia State in the postseason.
 
Fort Hays State has defeated the Lady Hornets six times since the start of the 2013-14 season, more than any other school (UCM is second with four). The Lady Hornets have lost 30 games in that span, with FHSU accounting for 20 percent of those losses.
 
The Tigers bring five All-MIAA performers with them into the conference tournament, tied for the most for any program this season (UCM). It matches the most all-conference performers in a single season in program history. Tatyana Legette (second team) leads FHSU with 13.8 points, 8.2 rebounds and 2.6 assists per game, ranking in the top 15 in the MIAA in seven different categories. Carly Heim, Kacey Kennett, Lanie Page and Emma Stroyan, all named honorable mention, all average more than 9.4 points per game, making FHSU the only team in the conference with five players averaging more than nine points each night.
 
The Lady Hornets finished the regular season with just four wins over their final 11 games, sliding to sixth in the MIAA standings. ESU has reached seven-straight MIAA Championship games, winning 16 consecutive conference tournament games. Their last loss in the MIAA Tournament came in the 2012 championship game against Washburn. Since the tournament moved to Municipal Auditorium in 2003, the Lady Hornets are 14-1 in the Quarterfinal round.
 
ESU picked up a pair of All-MIAA performers in Tyra Jones (third team) and Jessica Wayne (All-Defensive team). Jones leads the team with 13.3 points and 7.7 rebounds per contest, while Wayne paces the team with 2.1 assists and 2.0 steals each night.