The Fort Lewis College men’s soccer team earned its first road win of 2021 in style, overcoming an early 1-0 deficit to upend No. 16 Colorado Mesa University, 2-1, on Friday under the lights at Maverick Field.
“In general, that was just a really good college soccer game,” said FLC head coach David Oberholtzer. “I thought out guys played very well. We had great ideas and moves forward, we played well, defensively, and it was just a great, gritty team performance.”
Fort Lewis displayed that grittiness early on as Colorado Mesa drew first blood, capitalizing on a penalty kick opportunity at the 16:59 mark of the first half scored by Gabriel Peres.
The Skyhawks were able to shake off the early deficit and net the equalizer in the 37th minute, when sophomore Matt Baldridge scored his second goal of the season.
FLC would ride that momentum into the second half, taking the lead for good in the 61st minute. Advancing the ball from the right-back position, and just inside midfield, Ciaran Feeney lofted a cross into the box for Gabriel Legendre, who angled a header top-shelf past Durant to put the Skyhawks up 2-1.
“It was a great service from distance, as well as a great run and great finish by Gabe. Just a super goal in general,” Oberholtzer said.
Unfortunately, the men’s soccer team closed out its non-conference action on Sunday by losing 2-1 to Westminster College
“I was disappointed with how we played (Sunday). I think we were still physically and mentally fatigued from Friday and we let that kind of take over out there,” Oberholtzer said. “I’m disappointed simply because I know we can play a lot better, and the guys know they have a lot more in them.”
The Fort Lewis women’s soccer team dropped a 4-1 decision to No. 6 University of Colorado Colorado Springs at Dirks Field in Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference play on Sunday.
The Mountain Lions were offensively dominant with 23 shots to FLC’s six. Of the 23 UCCS shots, 12 were on target, compared with three for the Skyhawks.
“A few mistakes were the difference in that match. Against a very talented team you need to be able to go long periods of time without stepping on your own toes,” said head coach Damian Clarke. “In my eyes, it looked like we could have scored more than one goal today. We could have made things more difficult for UCCS today, but that was a good team we faced, and this match made us better.”
The start of the 2021 season didn’t get any easier for the Fort Lewis College football team as it traveled to face the undefeated Western Colorado University Mountaineers on Saturday.
Fort Lewis fell by a 42-0 final to Western Colorado, which improved to 4-0 on the season and is off to the program's best start since 1980.
The Skyhawks kept the game close early on, with Western not tallying its first score until 45 seconds remaining in the first quarter on a 1-yard touchdown run by Josh Cummings.
WCU’s offense then caught fire in the second quarter with three scoring drives spanning 5:58 to build a 28-0 cushion at the half. The Mountaineers did the bulk of their damage on the ground, rushing 38 times for 222 yards and four touchdowns.
As for the FLC offense, redshirt junior running backs Emmanuel Nwosu and Jeff Hansen paced the backfield as the duo combined for 28 rush attempts. Hansen netted 21 yards on 10 touches, while Nwosu rushed for a net of 18 yards on 14 attempts.
Freshman quarterback Jack Hanenburg and redshirt sophomore Brayden Miller split time under center for the Skyhawks, combining for 54 passing yards on 6-of-14 attempts.
Sophomore wide receiver Jordan Cummings hauled in a career-high three receptions for 28 yards. Redshirt junior tight end Zach Russell, the Skyhawks’ second-leading receiver in 2019 with 32 catches and four touchdowns, added his first catch (15 yards) of 2021 in his second game back from injury.
Defensively, redshirt sophomore Jayden Helms and redshirt freshman Fred Mady III continued their strong 2021 seasons as they tied for the team lead in tackles with 10.
Fort Lewis College volleyball fell in straight-sets (27-25, 25-12, 25-11) to Regis University in RMAC action on Saturday.
Fort Lewis was held to a .068 hitting percentage with Regis coming in at .283. The Rangers edged out the Skyhawks in digs, 49-37, and total blocks with nine to FLC's six. Senior Avynn La Rose led the team with six kills while freshman Alexis Hobie picked up five. Freshman Natalia Lambos filled the setter role, dishing out 21 helpers to go along with two kills and seven digs. Hobie led the team defensively with 11 digs.
The Fort Lewis College women’s golf team competed in its second fall tournament this week, finishing 18th overall at the RJGA Shootout hosted at the Golf Club of Estrella.
Fort Lewis had two players record top 20 finishes, highlighted by junior Emma Tornroos placing ninth overall with a tournament score of +4 (148).
Tornroos carded rounds of +1 (73) and +3 (75), finishing Day One of the tournament in a tie for fourth place. She dominated on short yardage as her score of -3 (2.63 average) on Par-3s led all players and her six total birdies were tied for the second most in the tournament.
Fellow junior Brooke Sturtevant earned a tie for 20th overall with a tournament score of +8 (152).
Sturtevant fired consistent rounds of 77 and 75, gaining six spots during Tuesday's final round.
Junior Peyton Glenn finished in a tie for 93rd at +28 (172), while sophomores Kendal Gutierrez (+36, (180)) and Molly Schwartz (+39, (183)) rounded out the Skyhawks' scorecard in 100th and 102nd place, respectively.
