Conference season is upon the Emporia State basketball teams, and that means increased excitement and bigger crowds are expected starting with tomorrow’s doubleheader against Fort Hays State.
“There’s always a rise in intensity,” said Don Weast, Assistant Athletic Director for Media Relations. “These are teams you know and see year in and year out.”
ESU will open with a familiar foe in Fort Hays State. The two in-state rivals have played each other in men’s basketball since 1927.
The Lady Hornets and Hornets have given reason for fans to show up in full-force with their early-season success this year.
The ESU women are ranked No. 3 in the latest ESPN-USA Today Coaches’ poll, entering tomorrow’s game with a 6-1 record. The team was ranked No. 1 in the nation last week before losing to Metro State.
Weast said many fans around the area had become attached to the Lady Hornets because they were good representatives of the school and community.
“The women’s program at Emporia State over the last decade has been outstanding on the court, off the court, and in the classroom,” Weast said, “and that really has kind of resonated with Emporia State fans, both in Emporia and in the whole Flint Hills region.”
The ESU men’s team is also off to a hot start, beginning the season with seven consecutive victories. The undefeated record is somewhat surprising, considering ESU was picked ninth in the 10-team preseason MIAA coaches’ poll.
The Hornets’ roster features three Emporia High graduates — Wes Book, Caleb Tegtmeier and Spencer Allen — and five other players from the state of Kansas.
“It’s a team you can really get a hold of and like,” Weast said. “Plus, they’ve been playing very well together.”
Both games have the potential to come down to the final minutes. Fort Hays State’s women enter the game undefeated, and the FHSU men have just a single loss.
“This is probably the best doubleheader in the MIAA tomorrow,” Weast said. “There’s only two losses out of the four teams playing. That’s better than any other doubleheader that’s going on, and that’ll kind of add to the excitement.”
Weast said the advantage of following Emporia State’s basketball teams was that fans could come much closer to the players they support.
“That’s one of the great things about Division II,” Weast said. “If you go to Allen Fieldhouse, they’ve got ropes up to keep people away from the players so they don’t get mobbed. Here, when a game gets over with and you go in that hallway outside the lockerroom, there’s people everywhere talking to them.”
Advance tickets are available until 5 p.m. today through the ESU Ticket Office or by calling 341-NEST. General admission seats are $6.50 and Kids/Senior tickets are $4.50.
In addition, fewer than 25 reserved seats are still available at $9.50 each.
Tickets are also available inside White Auditorium on the day of the game.
ESU experienced a jump of 1,123 fans per home game in conference play last season. The Lady Hornets averaged 1,994 fans in nonconference games last year — a school record — before drawing 3,117 per contest during MIAA play.