One night after head coach Jason Flores questioned the effort of his team, the Fort Lewis College women’s basketball team responded in a big way.
The Skyhawks never trailed and dominated in every facet of the game, as Fort Lewis (7-3, 3-2 Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference) marched into Gunnison and steamrolled Western State, 84-45. Five Skyhawks scored in double figures with Kate Bayes’ 12 points leading the way. Mary Rambo had a double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds in 16 minutes played.
In what was a true team effort, each player was in the game more than 10 minutes and everyone on the roster got into the scoring column. The Skyhawks bench outscored Western State’s 43-9.
“We were all disappointed after (Friday night). We talked about some things we need to improve on after the game,” Flores said in a phone interview with The Durango Herald. “There was a different look in their eyes, and I could tell they weren’t going to let another one get away without a serious fight.”
While it was nice to have everyone contribute offensively, the story of Saturday’s game was the suffocating defense and the depth displayed by the Skyhawks.
The low scorer on the night for Fort Lewis, freshman Sydni Brandon, played 22 minutes and racked up seven rebounds to go along with five steals on the defensive end. Brandon finished with three points but led a Skyhawks’ defensive effort that smothered Western State’s offense and took advantage at the other end of the floor.
Brandon’s effort on defense was contagious, as FLC forced 32 turnovers and converted them into 44 points. The relentless defensive pressure forced the Mountaineers into shooting 31 percent from the field.
“Sydni was a spark plug,” Flores said. “She came in the game and was trapping them and forcing them into making mistakes. She was all over the place.”
It was clear early on that Saturday would be a different result than Friday’s disappointing loss at CSU-Pueblo. Fort Lewis led by nine after the first quarter and pushed the lead to 15 by halftime. They kept the pressure on the Mountaineers and stymied the home team in the second half.
FLC’s 19 third-quarter-point total was more than the 17 Western State (3-4, 1-4 RMAC) could muster up in the entire second half.
Flores had a hunch his team had a clear advantage in depth. He went to the bench early and often, and each player answered the bell when her name was called. Dallas Dickerson had 11 points off the bench, while Ande Lampert and Durango High School alumna Emily McCue poured in 10 each for Fort Lewis.
“Everyone contributed, and the bench probably outplayed our starters in the first half,” Flores said. “That’s when it’s fun, and once we got in a rhythm we never let up. We really wanted the team to feel good about where we’re at heading into the holiday break, and they certainly achieved that (Saturday).”
The Skyhawks will be back in action at noon on New Year’s Day at Fort Lewis College’s Whalen Gymnasium where they’ll take on UC-Colorado Springs.
jfries@durangoherald.com
