HAYS, Kan. - The top-ranked Fort Hays State women's basketball team stumbled late Saturday afternoon (Dec. 11), falling to No. 17 Nebraska-Kearney 61-56 after a Loper fourth-quarter rally. The Tigers (7-1, 2-1 MIAA) led by as many as 12 midway through the third quarter, but a 14-0 run by the Lopers (8-1, 3-0 MIAA) early in the fourth quarter allowed the visitors to rally for the win.
 
After the Tiger defense held UNK to less than 30 percent from the floor in the first half (8-of-27, 29.6 percent), the Lopers caught fire out of the locker room. UNK connected on 15-of-23 shots after halftime (65.2 percent), including a blazing-hot 72.7 percent (8-of-11) in the fourth quarter to complete the comeback.
 
Fort Hays State had similar offensive struggles in the first half, but a trio of 3-pointers from Jaden Hobbs, including one just before the buzzer sounded at halftime, helped the Tigers take a 25-20 lead into the intermission. FHSU hit 11-of-31 (35.5 percent) from the floor over the first 20 minutes while outrebounding the Lopers by five in the first half, 22-17.
 
The Tigers tried to pull away in the third quarter, hitting 75 percent from the floor (9-of-12), including a 2-of-3 effort from deep to build a double-digit lead. Two buckets from Olivia Hollenbeck and another Hobbs 3-pointer quickly put the Tigers in front by 10, 32-22, but Kearney answered by scoring the next two baskets. A 3-pointer from Whitney Randall sparked an 8-2 Tiger run, with Hollenbeck giving the Tigers their largest lead of the afternoon, 40-28, with a traditional 3-point play.
 
That's when the Loper offense came to life, with UNK doubling up the Tigers over the final 14-plus minutes, 33-16. Fort Hays State was up nine at the end of the third quarter after a Katie Wagner layup and again built the lead to double figures on the first possession of the fourth quarter with a jumper from Randall. But after missing their first 11 shots from behind the arc, the floodgates finally opened for the Lopers in the fourth when they hit 3-pointers on three of their first four possessions to tie things up at 49.
 
UNK took the lead on the following possession before Kate Dilsaver ended the run with a 3-pointer to again level the score at 52 with 5:17 to play. The Lopers answered with another bucket, but Dilsaver again tied things up with a nifty layup with 3:18 on the clock. UNK kept things rolling on the other end, scoring on the next two possessions to take the lead for good. Dilsaver added another layup to make it a one-possession game with 95 seconds to go, but the Tigers were unable to close the gap the rest of the way.
 
Fort Hays State finished the game shooting 42.9 percent from the floor (24-of-56), while the Lopers hit 46.0 percent overall (23-of-50). UNK outrebounded the Tigers by 10 in the second half and by five for the game, 35-30.
 
Hobbs led the way with 12 points on her four 3-pointers and had a game-high six assists and four steals. Hollenbeck added 11 points, while Wagner had 10. Randall scored eight and Dilsaver tallied the last seven points for the Tigers, finishing the game 3-of-3 from the floor and 1-of-1 from behind the arc.
 
The Tigers will continue conference play Friday (Dec. 17) when FHSU hosts Central Oklahoma beginning at 5:30 p.m.