#6 Fort Hays State Women's Basketball (23-2, 14-2 MIAA)
at Missouri Southern (17-7, 11-4 MIAA)
Thursday, February 19, 2026 • 5:30 p.m.
Joplin, Mo. • Robert Ellis Young Gymnasium
 
The sixth-ranked Fort Hays State women's basketball team will open its final road trip of the season Thursday (Feb. 19) when the Tigers take on Missouri Southern. First tip from Joplin, Mo. is set for 5:30 p.m.
 
The Tigers (23-2, 14-2 MIAA) enter the matchup one-half game up on second place in the MIAA standings with three games to play. The Lions (17-7, 11-4) are tied for third in the league standings, two games behind FHSU and UCM in the loss column.
 
Due to a $5 million ongoing renovation project inside the Leggett & Platt Athletic Center, the Lions are playing home games inside Robert Ellis Young Gymnasium this season. The building was the home of the Lions until the LPAC was completed in 1999.
 
Game Coverage
Live video will be available on The MIAA Network, with subscriptions available at $15 per game, $35 for a monthly subscription or $140 for an all-access pass. Radio coverage will be available on KJLS 103.3 FM or online here, with voice of the Tigers Gerard Wellbrock on the call. Live stats will be available online here.
 
Tickets
General admission tickets are available in advance or at the door at a cost of $5.

Quick Hits
- Now with a Division II-best 697 points this season, Talexa Weeter is 100 points away from tying the MIAA record for points in a season (797, Jennifer Harris, Washburn, 2005-06). Three more points will give the junior just the fifth 700-point season in MIAA history and the first in 20 years.
- Brooke Loewe leads all NCAA basketball, men and women spanning all divisions, with 257 assists this season. She is 14 shy of tying the MIAA record for assists in a season (271, Jennifer Perine, ESU, 1998-99).
- FHSU has claimed seven of the 13 MIAA Player of the Week honors given out this season, including five for Talexa Weeter and two for Brooke Loewe. No other school or individual has more than one.
- Fort Hays State has now won 20 or more games in 15-straight seasons, extending the longest active streak in Division II. It is fifth-longest across all NCAA Divisions behind only UConn, Baylor, Florida Gulf Coast & Louisville.
- The Tigers have dropped each of their last two road games at Missouri Southern and are 10-16 all-time on the road in Joplin.
- The Tigers are 16-7 on the road in Missouri under head coach Talia Kahrs. Nearly half (7-of-15) of FHSU's losses over the last three seasons have taken place in the Show-Me State.
- Talexa Weeter has scored in double figures in 35-straight games.
- FHSU and MSSU have played three times on February 19. The Tigers are 2-1, but the Lions won the last meeting.
- Ellie Stearns ranks 10th in FHSU history in made 3-pointers (131) and sixth in 3-point attempts (448).
 
20 Wins Now the Norm
- Fort Hays State has reached the 20-win plateau for a 15th-consecutive season, extending the longest active streak of 20-win seasons in Division II. FHSU's streak is tied for the fifth-longest active streak of 20-win seasons across all NCAA divisions.
- FHSU reached the 20-win plateau just eight times over the first 42 years of the program before the current streak began in 2011-12, including no more than two consecutive 20-win campaigns during that time.
- The next-best active streak of 20-win seasons in the MIAA is four (MWSU), while the next-best streak in DII is Drury with 12.
- Only four DI programs have longer active stretches of 20-win seasons, including UConn (33), Baylor (26), Florida Gulf Coast (21 but in danger of losing streak this season) and Louisville (16), while FHSU is tied with South Carolina and South Dakota St.
 
National/MIAA Rankings
- The Tiger lead all Division II in assists (19.7 apg) and assist/turnover ratio (1.30).
- FHSU leads the conference and ranks third nationally in defensive rebounds (3.16 drpg), fourth in field goal percentage (47.5 percent), fifth in fewest fouls (12.9 fpg), sixth in winning percentage (92.0 percent), 11th in 3-point percentage (35.8 percent), 17th in scoring offense (76.8 ppg), 21st in scoring margin (plus-15.0) and 29th in field goal percentage defense (35.8 percent).
- While the Tigers are first in the country in defensive rebounding, FHSU is last in the MIAA in offensive rebounding (9.3 per game). Overall the Tigers rank fourth in the league with an average of 40.1 rebounds per night.
- Talexa Weeter leads Division II and ranks second across all NCAA divisions with an average of 27.9 points per game.
- Loewe's 17 assists against Nebraska-Kearney are the most in a game across all NCAA divisions of women's basketball this season and second-most across all divisions including men's basketball (Arkansas-Pine Bluff's Quion Williams had 18 assists vs. Champion Christian).
- Weeter's 45 points against Northwest Missouri State are tied for second-most by a DII athlete this season.
- Weeter ranks fourth in the MIAA in rebounds (8.6 per game) and second in the MIAA in field goal percentage (52.5 percent).
- Olivia Mortensen ranks third in the conference with a field goal percentage of 49.8 percent.
 
1K Magic
- Talexa Weeter surpassed the 1,000-point plateau in the first quarter against Rogers State earlier this season (Jan. 23).
- She is the 26th player in program to hit that milestone.
- The Goodland, Kan. native needed only 62 games to reach that threshold, second-fastest in team history (Annette Wiles 57 games, Shauna Porter 65 games).
 
30 Point Performances
- Talexa Weeter eclipsed the 30-point plateau for the 11th time in her career against Newman.
- She is the second Tiger with 10 or more 30-point games (Annette Wiles, 14).
 
Triple Trouble
- Brooke Loewe totaled 11 points, 10 rebounds and 11 assists in the win over Emporia State, putting together the first Tiger triple-double since 2014 (Kate Lehman - 31p, 10r, 11b vs. Kansas Wesleyan, 12/16/14).
- She is the third FHSU player in FHSU's DII history to record a triple-double (Kate Lehman 3, Amy Scoby).
 
Dropping Dimes
- Brooke Loewe leads all NCAA basketball, men and women, all divisions, with 257 assists.
- With an average of 10.3 assists per game, the Huxley, Iowa native is the only player in all divisions averaging in double figures.
- Brooke needs 14 assists to tie the MIAA record for assists in a season (271, Jennifer Perine, ESU, 1998-99).
- She needs 69 assists to tie the NCAA Division II record for assists in a season (326, Kailee Howe, West Liberty, 2015-16).
- After tying the school record with 13 assists in a game last season, Brooke has tallied 14 or more assists six times this season. Only two other players in Division II have done so once.
- Should Loewe reach 300 assists this season, she would be the sixth player in DII history and just the 25th player in the history of NCAA women's basketball to do so.
- Should she finish the season averaging in double figures, it would be just the sixth time a DII athlete accomplished that feat and she would be just the fourth individual to do so (Selina Bynum of Albany State did so three times in 1990-93).
 
Last Time Out
- The No. 7 Tigers nearly reached the century mark for the 26th time in program history Saturday (2/14/26) in a 99-57 win over Newman.
- The Tigers matched their program record with 36 points in the third quarter while totaling 58 points in the second half, their most in a half in an MIAA game since joining the league in 2006.
- Talexa Weeter scored 33 points on five 3-pointers, while Olivia Mortensen added 25 points and 10 rebounds for her first career double-double.
 
Scouting the Lions
- Missouri Southern is 17-7 on the year and 11-4 in conference play, but have lost two in a row, both at home.
- They led the league with just one loss at the start of February, but have dropped three of their last five contests.
- The Lions lead the conference and rank eighth in DII with an average of 23.7 free throw attempts per game.
- They also lead the league with 15.1 offensive rebounds per night.
- Ashlyn Alloway ranks second in the MIAA with eight double-doubles, averaging 13.8 points and 8.8 rebounds per contest.
 
Series History with Missouri Southern
- Fort Hays State is 40-21 all-time against Missouri Southern.
- The Tigers have two in a row overall, but have lost each of the last two in Joplin.
- FHSU is just 10-16 on the road against the Lions.
- The Tigers are 2-1 against MSSU under head coach Talia Kahrs, including an 0-1 mark on the road.
- FHSU is 18-11 against the Jets in regular season MIAA matchups.
- The series is tied 1-1 in overtime meetings, with the Tigers prevailing in double OT two years ago in Hays.
 
Last Meeting with the Lions
- The 7th-ranked Tigers used a solid defensive effort and another Katie DeGarmo double-double to hold off Missouri Southern last season in Hays (2/20/25), winning 64-55.
- The Tigers never trailed after DeGarmo scored six seconds into the contest to give FHSU the lead for good.
- The Lions shot 31.3 percent from the floor, their second-worst outing of the season.
- DeGarmo recorded a season-high 27 points and 15 rebounds to record her third-consecutive double-double.
- Talexa Weeter added 11 points and eight rebounds, while Kate Dilsaver had 10 points and eight boards.
 
Career Stats vs. MSSU
- Talexa Weeter - 11.0 ppg, 8.0 rpg, 0.0 apg in one game, including one game with 10+ points
- Brooke Loewe - 7.0 ppg, 1.6 rpg, 2.4 apg in five games, including one game with 10+ points
- Ellie Stearns - 4.6 ppg, 1.6 rpg, 0.4 apg in five games, including one with 10+ points
 
On This Date
- The Tigers are 8-3 in recorded history on February 19, most recently defeating Central Missouri on the road in 2022, 60-54.
- The Tigers and Lions have played three times on this date. FHSU is 2-1 in those games, however Missouri Southern won the most recent meeting in 2011 in Hays, 62-53.
 
Class of the Conference
Since joining the MIAA in 2006-07 (20 seasons), the Tigers lead the league with 434 wins. They have averaged close to 22 wins per season during that time.
 
MIAA Athlete of the Week x 7
- Fort Hays State has earned seven MIAA Athlete of the Week honors this season, including five for Talexa Weeter and two for Brooke Loewe. The entire rest of the league has a combined six such awards this season, with no other program earning more than one.
- Weeter's five weekly honors are the most by a player in the league since Brooke Littrell in 2022-23 and are the most for a Tiger since Kate Lehman had seven in 2014-15.
- Weeter averaged 32.5 points and 10.5 rebounds while shooting 60.5 percent from the floor in the first two games of the season.
- The Goodland, Kan. native then averaged 33.5 points and 10.0 rebounds in the two wins in Denver before Thanksgiving.
- Weeter totaled 32 points and 13 rebounds in a blowout win over No. 6 Pittsburg State.
- She erupted for an average of 37 points and 12 rebounds with a pair of double-doubles against Northwest Missouri State and Missouri Western, including a career-high 45 points against the Bearcats that is one off the program record and is tied for the most points scored by a DII athlete this season.
- Loewe earned the award on January 13 after breaking the school record with 17 assists at Nebraska-Kearney and following that up with 15 assists against Northwest Missouri State. Both totals are more than any other DII athlete this season, while her 17 assists are the most across all NCAA divisions this season and are the most by a DII athlete since 2023. She averaged a double-double for the week with 10.0 points and 16.0 assists.
- Weeter collected her fifth honor of the season on January 26 after averaging 26.0 points, 11.5 rebounds and 3.0 assists in wins over Rogers State and Central Oklahoma. She surpassed 1,000 career points in the win over the Hillcats.
- Loewe picked up her second weekly recognition after averaging a double-double (12.0 ppg, 11.0 apg) in road wins at Northeastern State and Arkansas-Fort Smith. She totaled 14 points and 14 assists in the win over NSU, surpassing 14 assists for the sixth time this season.
 
Making it a Habit
After reaching the NCAA Tournament once in its first 23 years in the Association, Fort Hays State has now been selected to compete in the NCAA Division II Women's Basketball Championship nine times over the last 11 seasons.
 
The Big 3-0
Fort Hays State reached the 30-win plateau for the fourth time in program history in 2021-22. FHSU has three 30-win seasons since 2014-15, while the rest of the MIAA has two 30-win campaign combined during that span (UCM 2017-18, PSU 2024-25).
 
Nationally Recognized
- The Tigers are ranked sixth in this week's WBCA Coaches Poll.
- FHSU has been ranked as high as No. 3 this year after opening the year ninth in the coaches poll.
- The Tigers are one of four teams that have been ranked inside the top 10 of every weekly release this season.
- This is the seventh time the Tigers have been ranked in the preseason. FHSU also opened the 2024-25 ranked 23rd, the 2022-23 season ranked third, the 2021-22 season ranked fourth, the 2019-20 season ranked seventh, the 2018-19 season ranked 12th and the 2015-16 season ranked 10th.
- Fort Hays State has been ranked inside the top 25 in 134 different weekly releases from the WBCA.
- This is the eighth-straight season the Tigers have been ranked at some point and the 13th-such season all-time.
- Including the 2017-18 season (multiple weeks receiving votes), the Tigers have been mentioned in the polls at least once in each of the last 13 seasons.
 
Double-Digit Winning Streaks
- FHSU's season-long winning streak of 12 games is the 17th double-digit streak in team history and is tied for seventh-longest in team history.
- Fort Hays State had multiple unique 10-game winning streaks in a season three times, in 1990-91, 2018-19 and 2024-25.
 
Trophy SZN
The Tigers won their fourth regular season MIAA championship and their second MIAA postseason tournament championship in 2021-22. FHSU now has 11 regular season conference titles all-time and three conference tournament titles. No school has won more MIAA regular season titles since FHSU joined the league in 2006-07 (FHSU 4, WU 4, UCM 3, MWSU 3, ESU 2, PSU 2, NWMSU 1, MSSU 1, UNK 1).
 
Century Mark
FHSU has 25 100-point outings in its illustrious history, most recently a 100-59 win over Rogers State (2/20/20), which was the first time FHSU scored 100 points against a Division II opponent since 2013 (114-86 vs Newman, 1/26/13).
 
Home Sweet Home
- Fort Hays State is leading Division II with an average attendance of 2,258 fans per game.
- That would rank 76th in Division I, higher than three Big 12 schools (Cincinnati, UCF, Houston), two Big 10 schools (Penn State, Northwestern) and one SEC school (Florida).
- Three of the top five attended games this season in Division II and six of the top 11 have been played inside Gross Memorial Coliseum.
- The Tigers led Division II with an average attendance of 2,084 per home contest last season. That total would rank 84th in DI and was more than 282 DI programs.
 
Looking Ahead
- The Tigers will play their final road game of the regular season on Saturday, February 21 when they take on Pittsburg State beginning at 1:30 p.m. in Pittsburg, Kan. That game will be the MIAA Game of the Week on 38 The Spot.