OPENING TIP
>> The Washburn women's basketball team will travel to Hays, Kan., to take on No. 13 Fort Hays State on Saturday, Jan. 18. Tip-off in Gross Memorial Coliseum is set for 2 p.m.

>> Washburn is coming off a 69-53 loss at Nebraska-Kearney Thursday night. The Ichabods are now 8-7 overall and 2-4 in conference play.

>> Fort Hays State is on an eight game winning streak and sits at 14-2 (5-2 MIAA) after dominating No. 15 Emporia State, 87-55, on Wednesday.

>> FHSU's only two losses of the season came in back-to-back games at the start of December to Nebraska-Kearney and Emporia State.

>> The Tigers were picked to defend their MIAA title in both the MIAA Preseason Coaches Poll and the Media Poll.

>> Washburn was tabbed third in the MIAA Preseason Coaches Poll and fourth in the Media Poll.

>> The Ichabods are 1-4 in away games this season and the Tigers are 8-0 at home.

 

WASHBURN NOTES
>> As a team, the Ichabods are averaging 70.4 ppg and shooting 42.8 percent from the field.

>> The Ichabods also average 7.3 triples per game and are 33.5 percent from three-point land.

>> Reagan Phelan leads the Ichabods in scoring at 13.3 ppg as well as in assists with 75 total.

>> The senior is 19 points away from entering Washburn's top-10 all-time scorers list. She currently has 1,292 career points.

>> Hunter Bentley is second on the team in scoring, averaging 12.5 ppg, and leads in rebounds (7.2 rpg), blocks (12 total), steals (1.7 spg), and minutes (35.3 mpg).

>> Shelbe Piggie is shooting 46.6 percent from the field and averages 11.7 ppg.

>> Alexis McAfee is just shy of the 10 point mark as she averages 9.6 ppg and is the second-leading rebounder on the team with 5.9 boards per game.

>> Mia Castaneda made her second career start on Thursday and scored 12 points on 5-for-8 shooting. She surpassed 100 points for the season in the game against the Lopers.

>> The Ichabods are 1-2 this season when playing opponents ranked in the top-25.

>> Washburn is 7-1 when scoring 70 or more points.

 

ICHABOD LEADERS IN THE MIAA
>> Phelan is second in the MIAA with 75 total assists with an average of 5.0 apg. Her average also rank her 24th in Division II.

>> Bentley is 11th in the conference in rebounds per game as she averages 7.2 and McAfee sits at 15th with 5.9 rpg.

>> Bentley is also fifth in the MIAA in free throw percentage, converting on 40-of-49 (.816) attempts from the foul line.

>> The junior has also logged a conference leading 35.3 minutes per game, ranking 44th in the nation.

 

ABOUT THE FORT HAYS STATE TIGERS
>> The No. 13-ranked Fort Hays State Tigers are 14-2 (5-2 MIAA) and have won eight straight games.

>> The Tigers are coming off an impressive 32-2 (18-1 MIAA) season in which they won the MIAA regular season and tournament title and advanced to the NCAA Central Region finals, ultimately falling to No. 7 Southwestern Oklahoma, 88-77.

>> The Tigers are averaging 76.6 ppg and are holding opponents to a stifling 54.3 ppg. 

>> They are second in the MIAA in three-point field goal percentage at 36.3 percent.

>> Belle Barbieri is leading the team in scoring at 11.5 ppg and has a conference-leading 8.7 rpg.

>> Jaden Hobbs (11.4 ppg), Kacey Kennett (11.3 ppg), and Taylor Rolfs (10.9 ppg) are also averaging double-figures.

>> Hobbs is the team's leader in assists (4.7 apg), which is third in the MIAA, and is fourth in free throw percentage at 81.1 percent (43-of-53 attempts).

 

HEAD COACH TONY HOBSON 
>> Tony Hobson is in his 12th season leading the Tigers and is the winningest coach in program history at 237-94 (.716).

>> He holds quite the resume as he enters his 28th season coaching with a record of 650-200. Additionally, he ranks eighth in winning percentage among active coaches at the Division II level with a .770 (448-134) percent success rate.

>> He has led the Tigers to the NCAA Tournament four of the last five years, including a trip to the NCAA Regional Championship game last season.

>> Prior to joining Fort Hays State, Hobson won three NAIA National Championship titles in seven years as the head coach at Hastings College.

>> He also coached at Hastings College, Barton County Community College, and Cloud County Community College.

>> Hobson is 10-12 against Washburn.

 

SERIES WITH FORT HAYS STATE
>> Washburn holds a 47-35 series advantage, but has lost eight of the last nine meetings.

>> When playing in Hays, Washburn is 20-18.

>> The Ichabods and Tigers last played each other in the MIAA Tournament semifinal game. FHSU won the contest, 75-48.

>> Coach McHenry is 17-10 against Fort Hays State.

 

LAST TIME OUT FOR WASHBURN (Jan. 16, 2020)
WASHBURN 51 (8-7, 2-4 MIAA)
NEBRASKA-KEARNEY 79 (11-5, 5-2 MIAA)

KEARNEY, Neb. – The Washburn women's basketball team trailed by three at the break, but offensive struggles in the third quarter proved costly for the Ichabods as they dropped the road contest on Thursday evening, 69-53, at Nebraska-Kearney. The Ichabods fall to 8-7 (2-4 MIAA) while the Lopers win their fourth-straight game and move up to 16-2 (5-2).

The first half was a close matchup with three lead changes and eight ties while neither team led by more than five points. The Lopers hit a layup with 22 seconds left in the opening quarter and carried a 15-10 lead into the second.

Mia Castaneda scored the first five points of the second quarter to even the score at 15-all. The teams exchanged scoring for the next five buckets before Washburn went on a 5-0 run to take the lead, 24-21. The Lopers answered with 9-1 burst over the course of two and a half minutes to reclaim the lead and go in front, 30-25. The Ichabods cut the deficit down to three, 31-28, by halftime after going 3-for-4 from the charity stripe.

Nebraska-Kearney started the second half on a 9-2 scoring run to quickly take a double-digit advantage. Alexis McAfee led all scorers with 12 points at the break, but foul trouble forced her to the sidelines in the middle of the third. The Lopers continued to pour in the points and held Washburn scoreless for the final 6:34 of the third period to outscore the visitors, 23-8, and push the lead to 54-36.

Hunter Bentley ended the scoring drought early in the fourth by converting on an old-fashioned three point play. The Ichabods continued to fight and scored six unanswered points to make the score 61-47 at the 3:35 mark. Reagan Phelan rattled off six points in 30 seconds for Washburn during the final 90 seconds, but the Lopers added one final three-pointer to finish with the 69-53 victory. 

Nebraska-Kearney shot 47.2 percent (25-of-53) from the field and Washburn's offense was a chilly 30.5 percent (18-of-59), while both teams went 6-for-21 from three point land. UNK edged WU on rebounds, 38-37, while the Lopers dominated in the paint, scoring 38 to the Ichabods' 24.

McAfee and Castaneda each scored 12 points for the Ichabods. Phelan scored eight of her 11 points in the fourth quarter and grabbed six rebounds. Bentley grabbed three steals and contributed seven points. 

The Lopers placed three players in double-figures, led by Elisea Backes with 16 points making 7-of-10 from the field.Klaire Kirsch chipped in 13 points and grabbed a game-high eight rebounds.

 

WASHBURN COACHES
>> McHenry is in his 20th season at Washburn and holds an overall record of 454-147 (262-102 MIAA).

>> McHenry, a national champion and the WBCA Division II Coach of the Year in 2005, is a four-time MIAA Coach of the Year as well as a two-time region Coach of the Year.

>> He has led the program to eight MIAA regular season titles and seven MIAA tournament titles as well as to 12 NCAA Tournament appearances.

>> His .761 winning percentage is 16th-best in Division II.

>> He was the quickest head coach to record 400 career victories in NCAA Division II women's basketball as he reached the milestone in just 512 games.

>> Became the winningest coach in Washburn women's basketball history on Dec. 18, 2018, when he earned his 432nd victory to surpass the record of his predecessor, Patty Dick (1977-2000).

>> McHenry played basketball and golf at Washburn University, where he graduated in 1984.

>> Brette (Ulsaker) Herber is in her seventh season on the Ichabod bench as an assistant coach. Herber played for McHenry for three seasons (2007-10) and was named the MIAA Defensive Player of the Year as a senior.

>> Erika (Lane) Yoder is in her first season as an assistant coach for Washburn. She also played for McHenry from 2014 to 2017 and was a two-time all-MIAA selection.

 

WASHBURN HISTORY
>> Washburn women's basketball is 935-428-1 (.687) all-time and is in the 51st season of the program's history.

>> Washburn is tied for seventh all-time in Division II in victories

>> Washburn claimed the 2005 NCAA National Championship over Seattle Pacific with a 70-53 win to cap off a 35-2 season.

>> Washburn has made 17 NCAA Tournament appearances and is 26-16 all-time in those postseason games.

>> The program has won 18 total MIAA Championships, earning nine regular season conference titles and winning nine MIAA Tournament championships.

>> There have been 30 All-American awards given to Washburn players, with 11 of those coming from the WBCA.

>> Washburn has finished 14 seasons with 25 wins and four seasons with 30 victories.

 

TAKE A LOOK AHEAD
>> Washburn returns home next week for games against Central Oklahoma (Jan. 23) and Newman (Jan. 25).