Fort Hays State (24-20, 9-15 MIAA) vs.
Emporia State (30-22, 10-14 MIAA)
Wednesday, April 30 – 3 p.m.
Hays, Kan. – Fleharty Family Field
 
Winner of FHSU/ESU game vs.
#4 Central Oklahoma (43-8, 20-4 MIAA)
Thursday, May 1 – 11 a.m.
Hays, Kan. – Fleharty Family Field
 
See tournament schedule below for remainder of tournament schedule
 
Fort Hays State Softball will open the 2025 MIAA Tournament on Wednesday (Apr. 30) by taking on Emporia State at 3 p.m. in the first game of the MIAA Tournament, which is taking place at Fleharty Family Field this year in Hays. The Tigers are the No. 9 seed in the tournament, while the Hornets are the No. 8 seed. Fort Hays State enters with a record of 24-20 overall, while Emporia State is 30-22 overall. The tournament is a 10-team single elimination format, a format that started in 2024.
 
With the lower seed in the matchup, the Tigers will play as the visitor even though the game is on their home field. The winner of the FHSU vs. ESU opening round game moves on to Thursday's quarterfinal game against No. 1 seed Central Oklahoma, which is set for 11 a.m. If the Tigers advance to the semifinals, they will play at 12 p.m. on Friday, and if they advance to the championship game, they will play at 12 p.m. on Saturday.
 
Fort Hays State jumped back into the win column by defeating Nebraska-Kearney 6-3 in the final game of the regular season. The result snapped a seven-game losing streak. The Tigers needed that win to get into the MIAA Tournament, tying for ninth place in the regular season standings with Nebraska-Kearney. It kept Northwest Missouri State out of the tournament, which also finished in the tie for ninth with FHSU and UNK.
 
TICKETS
Tickets are available online for purchase, including an All-Tournament pass that covers all nine games of the championship tournament.
 
LIVE COVERAGE
Tournament games will be available to watch on The MIAA Network via subscription. Live stats will be available for all games as well.
 
CHAMPIONSHIP TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE
Opening Round - Wednesday, April 30
Game 1 | 3 p.m. | No. 8 Emporia State vs. No. 9 Fort Hays State
Game 2 | 5:30 p.m. | No. 7 Missouri Western vs. No. 10 Nebraska Kearney

Quarterfinals - Thursday, May 1
Game 3 | 11 a.m. | No. 1 Central Oklahoma vs. Winner of Game 1
Game 4 | 1:30 p.m. | No. 4 Missouri Southern vs. No. 5 Central Missouri
Game 5 | 4 p.m. | No. 3 Rogers State vs. No. 6 Washburn
Game 6 | 6:30 p.m. | No. 2 Pittsburg State vs. Winner of Game 2

Semifinals - Friday, May 2
Game 7 | 12 p.m. | Winner of Game 3 vs. Winner of Game 4
Game 8 | 2:30 p.m. | Winner of Game 5 vs. Winner of Game 6

Championship Game - Saturday, May 3
Game 9 | 12 p.m. | Winner of Game 7 vs. Winner of Game 8
 
FORT HAYS STATE MIAA TOURNAMENT NOTES
Potential Tournament Opposition (Will be updated with information on the next Tiger opponent should FHSU advance)
Opening Round
#8 seed – Emporia State (30-22, 10-14 MIAA)
Series Record: ESU leads 38-23
-Since FHSU has been a member of the MIAA (2007), Emporia State has won six MIAA Tournament titles (2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2012, 2018). The Hornets also won six regular season titles in that span, but have not won the regular season since 2014.
-FHSU and ESU have met in the MIAA Tournament eight times. The Hornets hold a 5-3 advantage in those meetings.
-The last MIAA Tournament meeting between FHSU and ESU was in 2013, when FHSU won the title with a 7-4 victory in Overland Park. It was the only year the Tigers won the MIAA Tournament.
-ESU leads the NCAA Division II series history with FHSU 38-23. FHSU and ESU split the doubleheader in the regular season in Emporia with FHSU taking Game 1 2-1 in 8 innings before ESU won Game 2 12-1 in 5 innings.
-Sydney Wagner leads the Hornets in batting average (.364). Brooke Flewelling leads in extra-base hits (23) and RBIs (42).
-Gracie Rabe leads the Hornets in ERA (2.61), while Jordan Harrison leads in wins (15), innings pitched (138.1), and strikeouts (117). Harrison has 13 complete games this year, while Rabe has 9.
 
Fourth MIAA Tournament Appearance in Last Five Seasons
Fort Hays State will be making its fourth MIAA Tournament appearance in the last five seasons. It is the third-straight year the Tigers are in the tournament. They were the No. 8 seed back in 2023 when the tournament took place in Topeka and the No. 10 seed last year when the tournament was in Edmond, Okla. In 2021, FHSU was the No. 5 seed when they played a best-of-3 opening round series against No. 4 seed Rogers State in Claremore, Okla.
 
Second Year of Single-Elimination Format
This is the second-straight year the MIAA is using a single-elimination format for the MIAA Tournament and a 10-team field. The 2024 tournament marked the second time in the last four years the format changed from the traditional 8-team, double-elimination format the conference used for several years since FHSU joined the conference in 2006-07. Back in 2021, the tournament format changed to a best-of-3 series in the opening round, then moved to a 4-team double elimination tournament the following weekend between the four advancing teams from the best-of-3 series. That format lasted for only a year before the 8-team, double-elimination format was back in place in 2022 and 2023.
 
Tigers as the No. 9 Seed in MIAA Tournament
This is the first time the Tigers play as a No. 9 seed in the MIAA Tournament. The Tigers were the No. 10 seed in the tournament for the first time last year and went 1-1. As the No. 10 seed last year, the Tigers knocked off No. 7 seed Missouri Western in the opening round and then fell to No. 2 seed Pittsburg State in the quarterfinals.
 
14th MIAA Tournament Appearance Overall
Fort Hays State will be making its 14th appearance overall in the MIAA Tournament in 19 years as members of the conference. The Tigers qualified for the tournament every year from 2007 to 2016. The Tigers have one MIAA Tournament Championship in their history, claiming the 2013 tournament title. That year, the Tigers were the top seed in the NCAA Central Region and finished the season 47-12 overall, the best record in the program's NCAA Division II history that dates back to 1999. The Tigers have made appearances in the MIAA Tournament Final twice, which included the 2013 season and an appearance in 2011.
 
Tigers in the MIAA Tournament
Fort Hays State is 18-24 all-time in the MIAA Tournament. The Tigers snapped a 10-game losing streak in the MIAA Tournament last year by winning their opening round game. The streak started in 2014 with a pair of losses following an opening round win. The Tigers went 0-2 in the tournament in 2015, 2016, 2021, and 2023 before the win in 2024. This is the sixth appearance in the conference tournament under head coach Adrian Pilkington.
 
MIAA Tournament Records by Seed for FHSU
FHSU has an all-time MIAA Tournament record of 18-24. Here's a breakdown of their record in 42 tournament games...
#2 seed (4-1), #3 seed (2-4), #4 seed (1-2), #5 seed (3-4), #7 seed (4-4), #8 seed (3-8), #10 seed (1-1). FHSU was the No. 2 seed in 2013 when they won the MIAA Tournament.
 
Hays Hosts MIAA Tournament for First Time
This is the first time Fort Hays State is hosting the MIAA Tournament. For the majority of the years Fort Hays State has been members of the MIAA, the conference played the tournament at a neutral site. Wednesday will mark the first postseason games played at Fleharty Family Field since the 2013 season, when FHSU was the No. 1 seed in the Central Region of the NCAA Tournament and hosted one of the four-team regional pods. Central Oklahoma won the regional pod that year and went on to win the national title. FHSU is 2-2 in postseason games at Fleharty Family Field, going 1-0 against Emporia State and Minot State in the 2013 NCAA Central Regional, but 0-2 against Central Oklahoma. Emporia State will be the first Tiger opponent for the second-straight postseason event held at Fleharty Family Field.
 
Winning Record Guaranteed
Fort Hays State is guaranteed to finish with a winning record in 2025, entering the MIAA Tournament with a record of 24-20 overall. It is the third-straight year the Tigers will finish with a winning record and fourth time in the last five years they recorded at least 24 wins.
 
The League is Still Deep
The MIAA has 7 teams with at least 30 wins this season, including one team with 40 or more wins (UCO). Central Missouri is just one win away from giving the MIAA eight teams with at least 30 wins this season. The MIAA boasts three nationally ranked teams, which includes No. 4 Central Oklahoma (43-8), No. 16 Rogers State (35-12), and No. 24 Pittsburg State (37-13). The MIAA has five teams among the NCAA Central Region Rankings, which includes Central Oklahoma (No. 1), Rogers State (No. 4), Pittsburg State (No. 5), Washburn (No. 8), and Missouri Southern (No. 9). All 10 of the teams competing in the MIAA Tournament this year have at least 23 wins on the season and 11 of the 13 teams in the MIAA will finish with at least 20 wins on the season.
 
When Scoring First
Fort Hays State has been strong when scoring first this season, holding a record of 15-3. The Tigers are 17-3 in games this year when leading after four innings and 16-1 when leading after 6. Also, the Tigers are 22-4 this year when scoring at least 3 runs in a game. They are just 2-16 when scoring 2 or less.
 
2 NCAA Tournament Appearances
Fort Hays State has made two NCAA Tournament appearances in its Division II history, which dates back to 1999. Both times the Tigers went to the NCAA Tournament, they were conference tournament champions. The Tigers won the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Tournament in 2003 and went on to play in the South Central Regional San Antonio, Texas where they lost to Tarleton State and Texas A&M-Kingsville. The Tigers claimed the MIAA Tournament in 2013 and served as a Central Regional host. They went 2-2 in that regional, defeating both Emporia State and Minot State, but fell twice to Central Oklahoma, which went on to win the NCAA Division II National Championship that season at 51-11 overall going undefeated through the entire NCAA Tournament (9-0 - regional, super regional, and championship site).
 
All-MIAA Honors in 2025
Madison Pierce earned the first All-MIAA selection of her career this season as a second-team selection at catcher. Three other Tigers on the 2025 roster have MIAA postseason honors at some point in their career, which includes two-time All-MIAA selection Peyton Shepard, who has been out with injury all year, Savanah Egger who earned All-MIAA honors in 2023, and Regan Curry who was the Gold Glove winner at shortstop in 2024.
 
Solid in the Circle
Morgan Schmidt and Savanah Egger continue to put up strong numbers in the pitching circle for FHSU. They have started 43 of FHSU's 44 games this season and have pretty comparable numbers. Schmidt holds a 3.57 ERA with 117 strikeouts in 117.2 innings of work this year, while Egger has a 3.94 ERA with 119 strikeouts in 133.1 innings of work. Both have 16 complete games this season, while Schmidt has the lone individual shutout. Schmidt has 12 wins for the year, while Egger has 10.
 
Top 25 in Strikeouts Per Seven Innings
Fort Hays State ranks 25th nationally in strikeouts per seven innings as a pitching staff. The Tigers average 6.4 strikeouts per seven. Schmidt and Egger as a duo combine for 6.6 per seven innings. Only Pittsburg State (12th, 7.15) and Central Missouri (16th, 7.05) have higher rates in the MIAA.
 
Pierce Leads Several Offensive Categories
Madison Pierce, FHSU's lone All-MIAA selection this year, leads the team in batting average (.367), runs (28), RBIs (22), hits (47), walks (17), and on-base percentage (.438) entering the MIAA Tournament. Pierce ranks 14th in the MIAA in batting average and 18th in on-base percentage. Defensively, she leads the MIAA in runners caught stealing as a catcher this year with 12. She has cut down 30 percent of potential base stealers this season.
 
Lilly Mohr Leads in Power Production
Freshman Lilly Mohr leads the Tigers in home runs (7) and extra-base hits (14) this season. She leads the team in slugging percentage at .615 and she has the second-highest on-base percentage (.406) among regular starters in the Tiger lineup.
 
Fifth-Straight 20-Win Season
Fort Hays State reached 20 wins in a season for the fifth-straight year in 2025, currently with 24. The streak could have been six-straight years had it not been for the COVID-shortened 2020 season when FHSU went 15-13 through mid-March. The Tigers also won at least 20 in 2019.