The Fort Lewis College women’s basketball team was riding a wave of relentless defensive play heading into Tuesday’s matchup against Adams State. However, it was the FLC offense that set the tone on senior night.
The Skyhawks (20-6, 15-6 Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference) weren’t about to let the team’s only senior, Ande Lampert, down on her last regular-season game at Whalen Gymnasium, and they proved it right out of the gates. FLC scored a whopping 30 points in the first quarter and kept the pressure on for the entire 40 minutes en route to a 87-52 win.
Kayla Herrera led the Skyhawks for the second consecutive game with 17 points. Alyssa Yocky had another double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds. It was her seventh double-double of the season.
“We got off to a slow start on defense, but I think our offensive success got us going,” Yocky said. “We were just really unselfish out there. We shared the ball and really just picked apart their zone.”
The huge first quarter combined with a second quarter defensive effort that held the Grizzlies (2-22, 1-20 RMAC) to a dismal 11-percent from the field allowed Fort Lewis to take a commanding lead. The Skyhawks capped off a clinical 53-point first-half offensive performance with a Briana Clah buzzer-beating 3-pointer that gave FLC a 29-point advantage at halftime.
Stingy defense, especially in the second quarter, has become a staple of this young Skyhawks team that has exceeded all expectations now with a 20-win season.
“We gave them a bit too much space in the first quarter, but it was just a matter of playing harder on the defensive end,” Fort Lewis head coach Jason Flores said. “Part of the goal in this one was to have the girls play minimal minutes because the Tuesday-Friday game can be tough.”
The lead mounted in the second half, as the Skyhawks continued to dominate the interior. The advantage swelled to 39 points, which allowed Flores to conserve some minutes. Lampert, however, stayed in for much of the second half until she was taken out with a little more than a minute left. She received a nice ovation from the crowd.
“It wasn’t nearly as sentimental as I thought, and that’s probably because we just have so much left to play for,” Lampert said. “I felt hopeful for the rest of the season and hopeful for the future of the program. I just love these girls to death because it’s not over.”
The win is the 20th of the season for FLC, which marks the first time since the 2011-2012 season the Skyhawks have reached that mark. Fort Lewis will head to Westminster for the final game of the regular season as the fourth-place team in the RMAC. If the Skyhawks can hold on to that spot, they’ll host an opening-round game in the RMAC Shootout. But Westminster is a dangerous team, evident in its upset win of previously third-ranked Colorado State University-Pueblo only two weeks ago.
“Westminster is scary,” Flores said. “They score the ball so well from multiple positions and they have nothing to lose. It’ll be their senior weekend and they’ll provide a great test for us.”
jfries@durangoherald.com
