HAYS, Kan. - The No. 5 Fort Hays State women's basketball team was unable to recover from a slow start Sunday afternoon (March 7), dropping the title game of the 2021 MIAA Championship Tournament, presented by Citizens Bank & Trust to No. 14 Nebraska-Kearney, 57-51. After trailing by as many as 16, the Tigers (22-3, 20-2 MIAA) fought back within one possession midway through the fourth quarter, but could never get over the hump to tie things up or take the lead.
 
The Tigers now await the official announcement of the bracket for the 2021 NCAA Division II Women's Basketball Championship Tournament, set to be released on NCAA.com this evening at 9 p.m. CT. The No. 1 seeds in each of the eight regions will first be announced on all NCAA DII social media platforms.

The loss snaps a 17-game winning streak for the Tigers, tied for the third-longest in program history.
 
Fort Hays State struggled from the floor most of the afternoon, hitting 38.5 percent (20-of-52) overall, 20 percent (3-of-15) from behind the arc and 50 percent (8-of-16) from the line. The Tigers broke out of the funk with a 64.3 percent shooting effort in the fourth quarter (9-of-14), but the Lopers seemingly had an answer for each Tiger run.
 
Nebraska-Kearney (22-3, 19-3 MIAA) opened the scoring with a 3-pointer and never looked back, leading wire-to-wire. It was the first game this season in which the Tigers never held a lead.
 
The Lopers held FHSU without a basket for more than five minutes, leading to a 13-1 lead before the first media timeout. After seven misses to open the game, Jessie Sallach connected on the first Tiger bucket at the 4:25 mark off a pass from Jaden Hobbs. The Lopers added two more triples down the stretch, leading 19-7 by the end of the first quarter.
 
The visitors padded their lead to 16 early in the second quarter, the largest deficit FHSU has faced this season. Fort Hays State started turning things around late in the second quarter, using a 7-0 run to trim the deficit to single digits, 27-18. The Tigers locked down on defense in the second frame, limiting UNK to 4-of-13 from the floor (30.8 percent), allowing the Tigers to outscore the Lopers in the quarter, 11-10.
 
After trailing by 11 at the break, 29-18, the Tigers closed within six early in the third quarter thanks to a 7-2 run, including a 3-pointer from Madison Mittie to open the second half. But the Lopers had an answer for each Tiger run, fighting back to lead by 12 at the end of the quarter, 43-31.
 
Fort Hays State made one final push in the fourth quarter, narrowing the margin to three points by the 5:13 mark after opening the quarter on a 14-5 run.
 
Olivia Hollenbeck opened the frame with a layup before Hobbs hit a pull-up jumper. Katie Wagner then drilled a 3-pointer before Hobbs buried two shots of her own, including one from behind the arc to help the Tigers pull within four, 47-43. Wagner made it a one-possession game on the next possession with a jumper before responding to a pair of free throws with a driving layup, helping the Tigers stay within three with 3:44 to play, 50-47.
 
Nebraska-Kearney hit several big shots down the stretch to maintain its lead, rarely giving the Tigers possession with a chance to tie or take the lead. Hobbs hit a jumper at the 1:37 mark to close within 55-51 before the Tigers forced a pair of UNK misses, but FHSU was unable to take advantage on the offense end.
 
The Tigers hit 64.3 percent in the fourth quarter (9-of-14), including two of their three triples of the game. The Tigers controlled the ball well, turning it over just six times while forcing 13 Loper turnovers.
 
Hobbs led the Tigers with 14 points, four rebounds, two steals and one block. Wagner added 13 points on 6-of-8 shooting alongside six rebounds and two assists. Mittie grabbed a team-high seven rebounds while totaling five points, two steals and one assist.
 
Sallach scored eight points while hitting all four of her free-throw attempts. Hollenbeck totaled three blocks alongside four points, two rebounds and one assist.

Hobbs and Hollenbeck were both named to the All-MIAA tournament team. Hobbs averaged 11.7 points, 6.3 assists, 2.3 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game in the tournament while Hollenbeck averaged 12.0 points, 3.7 rebounds and 2.7 blocks per contest.

2021 MIAA Women's Basketball All-Tournament Team
Most Outstanding Player – Brooke Carlson, UNK
Elisa Backes, UNK
Haley Simental, UNK
Jaden Hobbs, FHSU
Olivia Hollenbeck, FHSU