KANSAS CITY, Mo. – The Fort Lewis College (1-6) women's lacrosse team showed early promise against a red-hot Rockhurst University (7-1) but fell 18-3 after a dominant, eight-goal second quarter.
Rockhurst outshot Fort Lewis 38-13 and forced 14 Skyhawks turnovers while committing just seven. The Hawks controlled possession with 19 ground balls and 15 draw controls to Fort Lewis' nine in each category.
Senior Phoebe Ramirez led Fort Lewis with two goals, while senior Diamond Velasco contributed a goal and two assists. Junior Sydney Tannaci recorded five draw controls, and junior Samantha Rodgers forced two turnovers. Senior Caley Lay made five saves in 30 minutes of play.
Fort Lewis had an early woman-up opportunity due to a Rockhurst green card in the first 45 seconds, but the Hawks' defense held firm. Lay made key saves on two free-position shots to keep the game scoreless early. Fort Lewis' Jasmine Nguyen fired two shots, both saved, before Rockhurst broke through with a goal at the five-minute mark. The Skyhawks played much of the quarter woman-down, allowing Rockhurst to extend the lead to 3-0 by the break.
Rockhurst opened the second quarter with a quick goal and added another a minute later, sparking a scoring surge that led to a 9-0 advantage with 8:37 remaining. The Hawks capitalized on Skyhawk turnovers, pushing the lead further before Ramirez scored off a Velasco assist just before halftime, making it 11-1.
Fort Lewis pressured Rockhurst's defense early in the third quarter with shots from Maddie Thompson and Marissa Lacivita. Rockhurst took five minutes to score again, eventually building a 14-1 lead. Freshman Abigail Leighty made key saves, including on a late free-position shot, but the Hawks entered the final quarter up 15-1.
Velasco struck first in the fourth quarter for her fourth goal of the season. Fort Lewis held Rockhurst scoreless for six minutes before a yellow card gave the Hawks a woman-up opportunity, leading to their 16th goal. Ramirez added another goal off a Velasco assist to make it 16-3 with 7:05 remaining. However, Rockhurst took advantage of further penalties to close out the 18-3 win. Fort Lewis logged 27 penalty minutes compared to Rockhurst's nine.
Up Next
Fort Lewis (1-6, 0-1 RMAC) returns home for RMAC play, hosting UCCS (4-2, 1-1 RMAC) on Friday, March 21, at 1:00 p.m. The Skyhawks wrap up the weekend with their annual Pride Game against Regis University (3-4, 1-1 RMAC) on Sunday at 1:00 p.m.
