Women's basketball begins 2025 with Native American Heritage Game at Sun Ute Rec Center

Admission is free to Saturday's games versus Navajo Tech

1/3/2025 10:00:00 AM

By: Angela Roberts, Associate AD-Communications

DURANGO, Colo. – Skyhawks women's basketball will play its annual Native American Heritage game, powered by NABI (Native American Basketball Invitational) on Saturday at the Sun Ute Rec Center in Ignacio, taking on Navajo Tech for a 5:30 p.m. tipoff. Saturday's games will feature free admission for all.

Last Time Out
Fort Lewis is coming off a loss to Northern New Mexico in its most recent game on December 20. Senior Darla Hernandez led the team with a double-double, contributing 20 points and 14 rebounds. Junior Kayde Strauss followed with eight points in her Skyhawks debut, and senior Eva Kingston was the second-leading rebounder with eight.

The Skyhawks shot 32.7 percent (18-of-55) from the field and just 17.4 percent (4-of-23) from three. The Eagles owned a shooting percentage of 32.2 (19-of-59) and a three-point percentage of 42.1 (8-of-19). Northern New Mexico benefited from Fort Lewis turnovers and converted for 25 points.

About Navajo Tech
There are no stats to sift through for the Navajo Tech women's team, but their record is 0-10 this season. There are 13 players listed on the roster.

Inside the Numbers
Fort Lewis averages 57.1 points per game and 32.4 rebounds per game this season. They average 20.4 turnovers per game. Senior Darla Hernandez is leading the way with 10.2 points and 8.6 rebounds per game. She has five double-doubles this season. Junior Deniece Ryan follows at 9.3 points per game while shooting a team-best 46.6 percent from the field. Senior Livia Knapp averages 2.3 assists per game to go along with 1.5 steals—both averages lead the team.

Showing Up for RMAC Play
There have been two exceptionally bright spots for the Skyhawks since the start of conference play, first with junior Deniece Ryan. Ryan is quick and agile with ball-handling skills and the ability to get to the rim, and it seems like everything is clicking at the right time. She is averaging 10.2 points per game overall and 14.8 points per game in conference-only games—a clip that ranks 14th in the league. Her field goal percentage stands out most at 51.2 percent to rank third in the RMAC. Joining her in the up-and-comers is freshman Katie Lamb who's averaging 11.5 points per game off the bench in conference play. Her three-point prowess stands out with a 40.7 percent clip that ranks eighth in the RMAC.

Up Next
Fort Lewis will return to conference play next week with a Thursday/Saturday split at Western Colorado University and Westminster University. The Mountaineers are 7-3 overall and 3-1 in RMAC play while the Griffins sit at 2-9 on the year and 1-3 in the league.

Fort Lewis and Westminster faced earlier in the year in a nonconference battle that ended in a heartbreaking 61-58 loss for the Skyhawks.

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