It took three quarters of play to shake off the week’s rust, but the final quarter was all that mattered for the Fort Lewis College women’s basketball team Friday night in Las Vegas, New Mexico.
Fort Lewis outscored New Mexico Highlands 25-4 in the fourth quarter to turn what was at times a struggle into a 10-minute offensive and defensive clinic. The sizzling stretch of play put the Skyhawks in complete control down the stretch, and they cruised to a 70-53 comeback win.
Kate Bayes led the Skyhawks (15-10, 11-9 Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference) with a season-high 22 points. Ande Lampert had 13 points, and freshman Alyssa Yocky was a major contributor once again with eight points and seven rebounds in the win.
“We were trying all game to find something offensively, but they really made it tough for awhile,” Fort Lewis head coach Jason Flores said in a phone interview with The Durango Herald. “They spread us out and got us into their style of play. We woke up and finally took the momentum in the fourth.”
For the first 30 minutes, the Cowgirls coaxed the visitors into playing their run and gun, frantic style of play. It worked well, as New Mexico Highlands (3-21, 1-19 RMAC) led 49-45 after a third quarter buzzer-beater, and Fort Lewis struggled to get anything going.
That’s when the Skyhawks came alive.
A Bayes 3-pointer put the Skyhawks up 50-49 and, once they got the lead, it was a different looking FLC squad. They went on to mount a 15-0 run to blow the game wide open. The offense utilized a high pick and roll that led to numerous buckets by Bayes and, when the offense started scoring, the defense picked up. The result was a fourth quarter bludgeoning that paved the way to victory for Fort Lewis.
“We really pushed the tempo down the stretch and tried to make their players work a bit more,” Flores said. “We were able to press and trap after our baskets and, when we started playing at the rhythm we like to play at, the momentum was ours.”
Dallas Dickerson, Astrea Reed and Kylie Santos all added six points for the Skyhawks.
Fort Lewis will play at 5:30 p.m. Saturday against Western New Mexico. The Skyhawks need to win one of their last two games to secure a spot in the RMAC Tournament.
jfries@durangoherald.com
