It took a few minutes for the Fort Lewis College women’s basketball team to get back into rhythm coming off the holiday break, and with the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference’s leading scorer Brittany Hernandez in town to welcome the Skyhawks back, those few minutes were the difference in Friday’s outcome against UC-Colorado Springs.
Fort Lewis never led, as Hernandez and the Mountain Lions cruised to a 83-65 victory. Hernandez filled up the stat sheet with 23 points, 11 rebounds, three assists, two blocks and two steals.
“They’re a really good team, and they came in with tons of focus and passion,” said Fort Lewis head coach Jason Flores. “You could see it on their faces and you could see it on the bench; they were desperate and we weren’t. We allowed them to get whatever they wanted, and they shot lights out.”
UCCS (7-5, 3-3 RMAC) didn’t just have spurts of lights-out shooting here and there, the Mountain Lions were having their way on the offensive end from the opening tip through the final buzzer. They finished the game 14-for-27 from 3-point range, 52.7 percent from the field and had four players finish in double figures.
It was Hernandez who set the tone early, as her energy and athleticism overwhelmed Fort Lewis. It didn’t take more than a quarter for Hernandez to get into double figures as the Mountain Lions jumped out to a commanding lead to start the game.
Hernandez also limited FLC senior post player Mary Rambo, who finished with four points and four rebounds.
Down 23-5, the Skyhawks (7-4, 3-3 RMAC) woke up and went on a 16-2 run behind impressive play from Astrea Reed. Her 10 first-half points brought the Skyhawks right back in the game, but that’s as close as they ever got. UCCS pushed back once more, and, by the end of the half, Hernandez’s 19 points led the Mountain Lions to a 41-29 halftime lead.
“They put up 20 points on us in about five minutes, and it was like everyone forgot what we needed to do,” said Fort Lewis senior Kate Bayes. “It started with us not communicating on defense, and we need to be a more defensive-minded team because our offense isn’t always going to be there.”
Bayes did her part on the offensive end leading FLC with 15 points. Reed and Michelle Turner finished with 10 each, and Dallas Dickerson added nine off the bench and grabbed a team-high eight rebounds.
It was UCCS, though, that ran away with the lead in the second half.
As the Skyhawks rushed bodies toward Hernandez to try and limit her productivity, the Mountain Lions’ guards started knocking down shot after shot. They shot a scorching 53 percent from beyond the arc in the second half behind Lauren Bennett, Gabby Ramirez and Jen Vigil who knocked down 11 of UCCS’ 14 made 3s in the game. Vigil finished with 15 points, and Bennet had 14.
“We’ve played so poorly at home the last two games, so it was good to see some shots go down,” said UC-Colorado Springs head coach Shawn Nelson, referencing consecutive double-digit home losses to Chadron State and Regis. “We’re still trying to find our way a little bit, so I shook up the lineup and this group played hard. Hopefully it’ll be a turning point for us.”
FLC’s Turner did her part to narrow the UCCS lead, but her three consecutive 3-pointers late in the game weren’t enough to put a dent in the lead, as the Skyhawks couldn’t get any stops at the other end. Turner finished 4-of-11 from the field, all 3-point shots.
“It was like a shooting gallery for awhile out there,” Flores said. “We didn’t make it very tough on them. The shots weren’t contested and we didn’t pressure them like we should have, but kudos to them for making the shots. It was like we were a scout team, and they just took what we gave them.”
Fort Lewis will hope to get off to a better start and have a better result against Metro State at 5:30 p.m. Saturday back inside Whalen Gymnasium.
jfries@durangoherald.com
