Chief starts right where he left off

With a keen eye for the blocked shot and rebounding, Ignacio High School alumnus and Fort Lewis College center Alex Herrera – the reigning RMAC Defensive Player of the Year – was named the RMAC Preseason Defensive Player of the Year on Wednesday, as voted on by the league’s coaches.

Steve Lewis/Durango Herald file photo

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With a keen eye for the blocked shot and rebounding, Ignacio High School alumnus and Fort Lewis College center Alex Herrera – the reigning RMAC Defensive Player of the Year – was named the RMAC Preseason Defensive Player of the Year on Wednesday, as voted on by the league’s coaches.

Steve Lewis/Durango Herald file photo

One team was ranked third; one team received three first-place votes.

In the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference preseason basketball polls released Wednesday, the Fort Lewis College men’s basketball team was ranked third of 14 teams, while the FLC women’s basketball program was ranked fifth but received three first-place votes in a clearly divided vote.

FLC, led by its 6-10 junior center from Ignacio High School, Alex Herrera, was picked to finish behind Metro State and Colorado Mines, the only teams to receive first-place consideration.

Metro State, the national runner-up last season, finished 32-3 and won the RMAC – regular season and tournament – at 20-2. The Roadrunners, who suffered one of their losses while ranked No. 1 in the nation to the Skyhawks in Durango, received 11 first-place votes to repeat.

Colorado Mines received the other three first-place votes.

The Roadrunners’ Brandon Jefferson, a 5-9 senior guard, was picked the RMAC Preseason Player of the Year. He averaged 14.8 points per game, 3 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 2.2 steals per game.

Herrera was named the RMAC Preseason Defensive Player of the Year, a postseason award he won last year. Herrera’s shot-blocking acumen translated from IHS to FLC; he led the RMAC with 84 blocked shots and ranked third in rebounding.

Herrera, Jefferson, Mitch McCarron, a junior guard from Metro State, and Trevor Wages, a senior center from Colorado Mines, all were unanimous preseason All-RMAC selections.

Herrera’s teammate, senior Nick Tomsick, a 6-1 shooting guard, joined Herrera on the preseason team.

The women’s preseason poll was more divisive, with six different teams receiving first-place consideration:

UC-Colorado Springs was picked to finish first but received just two first-place votes and finished with 32 points total.

Colorado Mesa received an RMAC-high five first-place votes but finished runner-up in the preseason rankings with 34 points.

Metro State received one first-place vote and was picked to finish third with 48 points.

Colorado Christian received a pair of first-place votes and was picked to finish fourth with 50 points.

FLC, with its three first-place votes and fifth-place ranking, received 56 votes from the league’s head coaches.

Black Hills State received the final first-place vote, was picked to finish sixth and received 69 points in the poll.

Abby Kirchoff, a 5-11 junior guard from UC-Colorado Springs, was named the Preseason Player of the Year, and Gillian Foster, a 6-3 senior center from Colorado Christian, was named the Preseason Defensive Player of the Year.

Kirchoff averaged 14.1 points per game last season.

Foster is second Cougars’ history with 77 career blocks.

Kirchoff, Tae’lor Purdy, a senior forward from Regis, and Chelsey Biegler, a junior guard from Black Hills State, were the only unanimous selections to the preseason All-RMAC roster.

Ashley Kuchar, a 5-8 shooting guard for FLC, was the Skyhawks’ lone representative on the team.

heraldsports@ durangoherald.com