The Fort Lewis College women’s lacrosse team dropped its second game of the season in an 18-2 loss to Rockhurst University of Kansas City on Monday afternoon at the Aztec Tiger Sports Complex in Aztec.
The Skyhawks (0-2, 0-1 Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference) opened conference play with high hopes, as FLC had not lost to Rockhurst in program history. Monday proved to be a turning point.
“They beat us on the draw for sure, changed the pace of the game, and when we had our sticks on the ball, we just didn’t get our feet underneath ourselves,” said FLC head coach Sean Claussen. “We had a lot of turnovers and unforced errors. When we made those mental mistakes, we beat ourselves up. You could kind of see that we just didn’t have the legs to compete with them midway through that first half.”
FLC took its only lead of the game when sophomore midfielder Mia White scored the opening goal to give the Skyhawks a 1-0 lead with 27:11 remaining in the first half.
The Hawks (5-4, 2-0 RMAC) quickly responded when Logan Derosia answered with her first of a game-high five goals to tie it at one with 26:08 left in the half. The Hawks proceeded to go on a 5-0 run in just under 10 minutes to make it 6-1.
FLC sophomore attacker Abby Escandon then answered with a goal to make it 6-2. That would be as close as it would get, as Rockhurst scored eight more goals in the half to take a 14-2 lead into the locker room.
The Hawks held a commanding 20-4 shot advantage, and much of that came from the turnover game, where the Skyhawks had 12.
“Those early turnovers really put us in a tough hole heading into half,” Claussen said. “Those mental errors, overthrowing a pass to a teammate and going out of bounds, or a ball bouncing off of a stick instead of a smooth catch, really, the little things got us.”
In the second half, it was a similar story, as FLC committed 10 turnovers and was just 3-of-9 in clearance attempts. The ball was in FLC’s end of the field for much of the second half. The Hawks held an 18-3 shot advantage and added four more goals.
The Skyhawks made mistakes partly because of tired legs, as they had just two substitutions available.
“We’re fortunate that we’ve got some players that can play at different ends of the field, so when we need a sub, we can make it and they’ll be able to step up at that spot,” Claussen said. “We’re trying to be as strategic as we can be, so that’s why the possession game is so crucial for us. If we can hold the ball and give our defenders a break, or be methodical on offense, it makes us that much stronger.”
It won’t get much easier for the Skyhawks, as they will take on No. 4 Lindenwood (6-0, 1-0 RMAC) on Thursday. The Lions have outscored their opponents by an average of 11.5 goals per game this season, which is the fourth-highest margin in the country, and they come in as the 16th-best offense in the nation, averaging 16.67 goals per game.
FLC will face off against the Lions at 1:30 p.m. Thursday at the Aztec Tiger Sports Complex.
bploen@durangoherald.com
