Familiar foes await the Fort Lewis College women’s lacrosse team in an unfamiliar setting.
The Skyhawks will begin play in their inaugural Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Tournament at noon Friday against Colorado Mesa.
The No. 2 seed in the tournament, FLC (9-6, 3-2 RMAC) has high hopes of winning the first-ever RMAC Championship trophy.
“That would mean a lot to our team, and that’s our plan. The whole goal is to finish this season with a win,” FLC head coach Kelsey MacDonald said. “The whole team would be super-stoked to win this thing.”
Just six years into its existence, the FLC women’s lacrosse program is coming off the best regular-season finish in its history.
Already with two wins against the Colorado Mesa Mavericks (8-2, 2-3 RMAC) this season, the Skyhawks are full of confidence that they can reach the championship game Saturday in Denver.
“We feel good and like we can go in and play our game offensively and defensively,” MacDonald said. “If we play our game, we will have success.”
FLC beat Mesa 14-7 in the season opener Feb. 22, and they won again 10-8 on April 6 in Durango. The Skyhawks outshot the Mavericks 56-43 over those two games.
Skyhawks’ sophomore goalkeeper Alyssa Spencer, a Durango High School alumna, is the reigning RMAC Defensive Player of the Week after making 15 saves in an 8-4 upset victory against Colorado College last Saturday. Spencer combined to make 19 saves in the two games this year against Mesa, including 11 in the second game.
“We have so much confidence in her,” MacDonald said of Spencer. “In the last 10 games, she has played unbelievable and really held together our defense.”
FLC has been led for four years by the attack of Abby and Ally Kvidera and Jessica Norby. Ally Kvidera scored six goals against Mesa in the first contest, while Abby Kvidera had a hat trick in each game. Norby, the Skyhawks’ career scoring leader, had a hat trick on just four shots in the second game.
If FLC can advance past the Mavericks on Friday, the Skyhawks likely will face No. 1 Regis (11-3, 4-1 RMAC) in the championship game on the Rangers’ home turf. Lindenwood, the top-team in the RMAC, is not attending the RMAC Tournament, as only the four Colorado teams in the conference are playing in this season’s championship – the first as the RMAC after years in the Western Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association.
FLC lost to Regis 11-3 on April 5 and 10-6 on April 13. The Skyhawks are anxious for one more opportunity against the Rangers, who will face No. 4 Adams State (2-11, 1-4 RMAC) in the opening round.
“We have improved a lot over the season. The defense has come together a lot more, and our attack has, as well,” MacDonald said. “We are all thinking about getting two wins.”
jlivingston@durangoherald.com
