Things are finally looking up for the Fort Lewis College volleyball team as it swept Colorado State University-Pueblo on Saturday night at Whalen Gymnasium.
FLC won Saturday’s match 25-17, 25-23 and 25-15. It was the first back-to-back win the Skyhawks have had all season and first win in straight sets.
Head coach Tricia Melfy knew the Skyhawks were close all season, and she was pleased in the impressive performance.
“These girls have been really working hard, but they know they can do it now,” Melfy said. “They’re seeing it in practice, they’re seeing the results. We haven’t really won as much as we’ve wanted prior to this, and so they don’t really know that it’s working. I mean, we’re seeing some really good results against some really good teams. I really think the relentless pursuit of last night’s win that led to today.”
The Skyhawks (3-9, 3-5 RMAC) were in a back-and-forth battle in the first set until the play of freshman outside hitter Tye Wedhorn took over, as she recorded six kills. The Skyhawks recorded a .382 hitting percentage in the first set compared to .114 for the ThunderWolves.
In the second set, the ThunderWolves (4-14, 2-7 RMAC) got out to an 8-1 lead before Melfy called a timeout. The timeout worked, and the Skyhawks worked their way back to even the score before eventually taking a 19-18 lead on a 4-0 run.
Junior outside hitter Haley Christiansen said Melfy told the team to focus on one pass at a time.
“She just told us to be confident,” Christiansen said. “Get one good pass and get a point and just moving on with the next server. But mostly, just stay confident with ourselves so we can play our game.”
Chrstiansen’s efforts were a major reason why FLC kept grinding, as she had seven kills in the set.
ThunderWolves’ head coach Jill Muhe thought that her team did not have enough consistent play to stop the Skyhawks’ comeback.
“They just stayed steady and never looked like they panicked,” Muhe said. “When they tied it at 18, it was a dogfight at that point and we didn’t do enough.”
It was the comeback effort in the second set that led to an impressive final game. FLC took a 7-2 lead early and never looked back.
Christiansen led the Skyhawks with 10 kills while Kendra Swackenberg had 29 assists. Brooke Schilling led the ThunderWolves with 10 kills while Kelsey Bell had 17 assists.
“That third set and the confidence they played with and the control they played with was great,” Melfy said. “We didn’t get down in that third set and stayed on top in the third set, and I’m so proud of them.”
The Skyhawks will take on Adams State at 7 p.m. Tuesday in Alamosa.
Cross-country
The FLC men’s cross-country team finished in second among Divisions II teams and fifth overall at the Roy Griak Invitational held at the University of Minnesota, while the women finished in eighth.
Senior Bismarck Kipilach finished in 26th overall for the Skyhawk men, as he crossed the finish line with a time of 26 minutes, 21.2 seconds. Fellow senior Sylas Schutt was two seconds behind and came in 27th with a time of 26:33.3, while Preston Charlie finished in 29th with a time of 26:29.6. Mason Phillips of Sioux Falls won the 8-kilometer race with a time of 24:53.1.
On the women’s side, senior Rebecca Bramley paced the Skyhawks in the 6K race with a time of 22:37.0, which was good enough for 10th overall. Freshman Rhylyn Jones finished in second for the Skyhawk women with a time of 22:57.8 and Dorothy Elder rounded out the top-three, finishing in 77th with a time of 24:34.6. Kayla Wooten of UC-Colorado Springs won the race with a time of 21:55.8.
Fort Lewis will race next Saturday at the Roadrunner Invitational held at Metropolitan State in Denver.
bploen@durangoherald.com
