Box Score

ALAMOSA, Colo. — No. 4 Fort Lewis (18-1 overall, 13-1 in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference) went 7-of-11 from three-point range to overcome a five-point halftime deficit and defeat Adams State (12-8, 7-7) 78-64 last night at Plachy Hall.

Behind the persistent long-range shooting of reserve guard Erika Richards and pressure defense, the Skyhawks blew the doors open in the second half, outscoring the Grizzlies 51-32 in the period.

Richards, a freshman from Mesa, Ariz., was held to just four points and missed both of her shots from behind the arc in the first frame. She canned three treys in five attempts in the second stanza to finish with a team-high 15 points, tying her career best in FLC navy and gold.

“We knew she had this ability,” sixth-year Skyhawk coach Mark Kellogg told the Durango Herald. “We had to get her going and get her to understand shot selection a little bit. [If] she gets open locks; she can knock them down.”

In general, three-point shooting told half the story of an otherwise close game. The Skyhawks went 9-of-21 from long distance and six different players connected on bombs. Mary Rose Paiz went 2-of-4 from downtown and finished with 11 points and nine rebounds. Stephanie Beeman buried both of her treys and had 12 points and four assists coming off the bench. Abby Jackson (nine points, six assists, three steals and 6-of-6 free throw shooting) and Katerina Garcia (five points) also connected from behind the arc.

The Grizzlies, on the other hand, were just 4-of-14, with RMAC Preseason Offense Player of the Year Vera Jo Bustos doing most of the damage (3-of-6, 15 points).

Defense dictated the rest. Fort Lewis forced 16 of Adams State's 25 turnovers in the second half. The Skyhawks notched 12 steals and eight blocked shots during the game.

“Our pressure defense dictated the game,” Kellogg told the Herald. “It didn't in the first half, but it really did in the second.”

In addition to Richards, Beeman and Paiz, the Skyhawks also saw Dana Schreibvogel score in double figures, with 10 of her 13 points coming in the second half. Jenna Santistevan added seven points, seven rebounds and two blocked shots.

Adams State's power forward Kelsie Kruger led all scorers with 21 points and grabbed a Grizzly-high nine rebounds — all on the defensive end. Adams State edged Fort Lewis in the rebounding battle, 33-32.

Fort Lewis shot .444 from the field (28-of-63), 9-of-21 from behind the arc (.429) and .813 from the line (13-of-16). Adams State hit .421 from the field (24-of-57), 4-of-14 from three-point range (4-of-14) and .857 (12-of-14) from the charity stripe.

After seeing a big lead evaporate two weeks ago at Colorado Christian in an eventual 80-79 loss, the game before Adams State's vocal crowd presented Kellogg's troops a chance to prove they could perform in a hostile gym.

“I wanted to see how we responded in another tough environment, and I think we passed the test this time,” Kellogg told the Herald.

The RMAC standings were shaken up over the weekend. What was a three-way tie between No. 15 Metro State, No. 4 Fort Lewis and Colorado Christian now shows a bit of separation. The Roadrunners (18-1, 14-1) benefitted from playing twice at home, defeating Western State 70-61 Friday and Mesa State 66-53 Saturday to sit alone atop the RMAC standings. Fort Lewis (18-1, 13-1) sits a game behind, but has a game in hand and owns the head-to-head tiebreaker by virtue of a 73-47 shellacking of the Roadrunners in Whalen Gym last weekend. Colorado Christian (13-5, 12-3) was upset twice, losing at Nebraska-Kearney 83-74 Friday and at Chadron State 61-59 Saturday.

Fort Lewis makes its annual two-game pilgrimage to New Mexico next weekend, where it faces Western New Mexico (1-18, 1-14) at 6 p.m. Friday and the suddenly red-hot New Mexico Highlands (10-12, 6-9) at 6 p.m. Saturday. Fort Lewis easily defeated each team earlier this month in Durango, beating Western New Mexico 86-27 on Jan. 8 and New Mexico Highlands 66-33 on Jan. 7.