There is one final game inside Whalen Gymnasium for three Fort Lewis College men’s basketball seniors who took different paths to senior night.
FLC will close out the season at 7:30 p.m. Friday at home against Adams State University. While the visiting Grizzlies (10-16, 10-11 Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference) need a win to remain in contention for the eight-team RMAC tournament picture, Friday will signal the end of a tough season for the Skyhawks (12-15, 7-14 RMAC).
“Adams is a really athletic team,” FLC head coach Bob Pietrack said. “Both teams are significantly different teams than the last time we played in December, but we’re looking forward to playing. Adams State is playing to get in the playoffs, and we’re simply playing for our pride at this point. It’s a regional rivalry game, and the players are excited to play.
“Our goal is to rally around our seniors and play outstanding basketball.”
Since FLC lost forward Riley Farris to shoulder surgery and two scholarship guards who left the program mid-season, the Skyhawks have leaned heavily on their three seniors in Marquel Beasley, Otas Iyekekpolor and Alex Semadeni.
Beasley is seventh in the RMAC with 17 points per game. He also leads FLC in rebounding with 5.7 per game, while Iyekekpolor has averaged 10.1 points and 5.6 rebounds and Semadeni another 11.4 points and 5.5 rebounds.
An All-RMAC first team talent, Beasley joined FLC as a junior transfer from Iowa Western Junior College and helped carry the Skyhawks to an RMAC regular-season championship during the 2017-18 season along with a third consecutive trip to the NCAA Division II South Central Region tournament.
Semadeni is a fifth-year senior who won two RMAC regular-season championships along with the 2016 RMAC tournament championship inside Whalen Gymnasium. An energy man off the bench during much of his FLC career, Semadeni has played every position on the floor for the Skyhawks and has come up with several special moments.
“It’s going to be really bittersweet,” Semadeni said of senior night. “Some of the best memories of my life have been in this gym. I’ve won two rings in that gym. There’s been so many special moments in the Whalen. I’ve been a part of some really great teams during my time here, and I’m grateful for all those memories. I’m looking forward to creating one last memory there.”
Iyekekpolor transferred to FLC as a senior from Division I Central Arkansas and had his signature game last Friday at Colorado Mesa University with 23 points and 12 rebounds.
“I think our guys know how important the three seniors are, especially guys like (Semadeni) who have been here for five years and a guy like (Beasley) who had two really impactful seasons. The stakes are high for us. We want to send them out the right way.”
FLC and Adams State met Dec. 1 in Alamosa in the first game of the RMAC schedule. Adams State won 68-60 in overtime behind 17 points each from Davere Creighton and Shemar Johnson. Creighton also had 12 rebounds in the game.
It’s John Dewey who has led the Grizzlies in scoring this year at 20.8 points per game, tied for second in the RMAC and only 0.2 points behind the lead of Connor Nichols of Colorado Mesa. Creighton has averaged 14.5 points, while Johnson has added 13.5 points per game.
Though FLC has struggled this season, the team has been supported by the fans with the fifth-best attendance mark in the RMAC with an average of 835 per game. FLC hopes to have more than 1,000 to send off the seniors.
“One of things we appreciate most about this season is how the community has continued to support us even though we’ve had a less than ideal season,” Pietrack said. “The Durango community has always supported us. We’re going to be very good again soon, and we will reward them for continuing to support us.”
jlivingston@durangoherald.com
