The Fort Lewis College women’s soccer team was one game away from the NCAA tournament last season. This season, FLC looks to return to the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2015 with a great mix of experience and talented newcomers.
Last season, FLC had a solid regular season, but made a miraculous run through the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference tournament. The Skyhawks had two penalty shootout wins before losing to Division II’s top team at the time, Colorado School of Mines, 1-0 in the RMAC championship game. A win against Colorado School of Mines would’ve put FLC in the NCAA tournament.
This season, head coach Damian Clarke hopes his team wins some more games in the regular season so a miraculous run through the conference tournament won’t be needed to make the NCAA tournament.
“We’re coming off a good preseason,” Clarke said. “We had a few less trainings than we'd like, because of lightning and delays … but I think that the team's excited. We had a good week of training this week and there'll be plenty that we’ll learn from these games. I look forward to getting into it on Thursday and seeing what things bring.”
Last season, the Skyhawks struggled with leaving a lot of space behind their defense, according to Clarke. FLC has gotten better at possessing the ball over the years, which means the team is higher on the field more. FLC had an issue with all that space behind them until the end of the season, when the Skyhawks made their run through the conference tournament.
FLC should be better in that aspect and overall with the returning talent from last season. The Skyhawks return their top four point scorers.
Ashlyn Salas returns after leading the Skyhawks with 13 points (six goals, one assist) as a sophomore. Salas will not be suiting up on Thursday as she recovers from shoulder surgery she had in the spring. Clarke said she’ll be out for a few weeks.
Abila Tapia is back after a sophomore year where she was second on the team with 12 points (five goals, two assists). Senior Josie Coulter also returns after she was third on the team with nine points (two goals, five assists).
Senior Abigail Nkrumah is also back after she also finished with nine points (three goals, three assists). Nkrumah was remarkably efficient last season, coming off the bench in all 20 games she played and only playing 599 minutes. In comparison, Salas played 1,271 minutes and Tapia played 1,303 minutes last season.
“Abby is a special kid and special player,” Clarke said about Nkrumah. “She was that last year. Realistically, if we would have had her for four years, versus her being at a junior college for two, I think you'd see even one of the better players in the conference. She's probably one of the most talented kids in the conference. She also came to the U.S. when she was 16. So she's 19 years old. She could be electric, she's a different level athlete and without a doubt, is capable of turning the game on its head.”
Clarke thinks Nkrumah could easily double her stats from last year with her increased role this season, especially with Salas out to start the season. However, Clarke also thinks Nkrumah will increase her assist numbers more than her goal-scoring. She’s the point guard of the offense with unselfishness and ability to create for others.
While it’s great for the Skyhawks to have the experienced returning talent, Clarke expects some reserve players from last year to step up into bigger roles. Junior Ann Spence is back after only playing in 10 games last season due to injury. She’s the fittest player on the team who scored three times in the preseason, according to Clarke.
Taylor Rittman is expected to have a bigger role. The former University of New Mexico player is a speedster who also competed in track and field for the Skyhawks. Junior Jenna Salazar should have a larger role; Clarke said she’ll need to have a big impact for the team with her powerful shot as Clarke hopes the team won’t have to score goals by committee like last year.
Clarke and the coaching staff brought in mostly offensive players in his recruiting class. He expects Swedish freshmen Lova Sjölund and Molly Widmark to have an impact on the Skyhawks and improve the team’s depth as well as Australian freshman Isla Witham. The international freshmen are still adjusting to the speed, strength and the fitness needed for the college game.
On defense, the Skyhawks return key pieces in senior Rachel Peebles, junior Amber Otts and senior Danielle Gonzales.
The defense needs all the experience it can get since the Skyhawks have two freshmen goalies on their roster. FLC lost a lot of experience to graduation in fifth-year senior goalkeepers Katlyn Rosenbaum and Riley Bravin, who split time for the last two years.
Freshmen Lilliana Brinkmeier and Trinity Lujan have been battling for the starting spot and for now, Lujan has emerged as the starter.
“She's a big, strong kid,” Clarke said about Lujan. “She's a really level-headed person as well. So, her ability to compete is probably in her steadiness. She's a similar athlete to Katlyn Rosenbaum, but is probably a little bit bigger. There's a similar presence in physically be capable of dealing with the game at this level.”
The Skyhawks open the season on Thursday night at home at 7 p.m. against St. Mary’s University. FLC was picked fifth in the RMAC preseason poll.
FLC plays some familiar foes in Eastern New Mexico and Lubbock Christian before conference play. On the other hand, FLC heads to California before RMAC play to face two tough tests in Cal Poly Pomona and Point Loma Nazarene. Cal Poly Pomona won the national championship last year and Point Loma Nazarene won it in 2023.
Clarke knows its tough to get nonconference home games. He also knows those coaches well and recognizes that games against those two teams will help FLC be ready to face the top RMAC teams like Colorado School of Mines, University of Colorado Colorado Springs and Colorado Mesa.
“There’s no doubt that the first six games are going to be a real test and we may end up needing to get good at the end again or see what happens in these big tests,” Clarke said. “But, the reality of it is, if you take care of some big games, then you have a chance to grow quicker. The hope is that we go into these games, we grow quickly into a tough RMAC season and win a few more games that we did last year.”
bkelly@durangoherald.com
