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Last chance draws front of iron

FLC can’t shoot past Colorado Mesa women

Going into halftime, the good news was that both teams only could get better.

Both the Colorado Mesa University and Fort Lewis College women’s basketball teams shot less than 21 percent from the field in the first half Saturday night at Whalen Gymnasium in Durango. Battling several fouls called on the perimeter away from the basket, neither team could get a rhythm, and that led to a 20-19 first half in favor of Colorado Mesa.

The game remained tight the entire second half, and the FLC Skyhawks had a chance to tie the game at 51 with just more than five seconds to play, but junior forward Mary Brinton missed the second of two free throws, leaving the Skyhawks a point short. The Mavericks added one late free throw, and a last-second desperation heave from FLC came up well short, giving Colorado Mesa (7-2, 4-1 Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference) a 52-50 victory.

“The ball didn’t go in the basket for us (Friday night), but we won every category,”LC head coach Jason Flores said. “I felt like we played hard, not that they didn’t. It’s a game that you deserve to win, and they did, too. That’s why it was such a close game.”

Colorado Mesa guard Erin Reichle, who had a game-high 16 points, looked to bury the Skyhawks (4-4, 1-3 RMAC) with a layup and a made jumper in consecutive possessions to give the Mavericks a 51-46 lead. Meanwhile, the Skyhawks had just turned the ball over two possessions in a row.

But Brinton, of Pagosa Springs, willed the Skyhawks back into the game by converting a traditional three-point play to get the team back within two points.

FLC forced a Mavericks turnover with 8 seconds to play, as the Skyhawks came up with a loose ball scrum on the floor and called a timeout to preserve possession.

Brinton then was fouled going up for a layup but made only 1-of-2. She finished with a team-high 15 points and had five rebounds in 14 minutes while battling foul trouble.

“Just a free throw is all you got to think about it,” Brinton said of her mind-set at the line, adding she wasn’t nervous.

FLC outrebounded the Mavericks 48-42 and finished with a slightly worse shooting percentage at 27.6 to Colorado Mesa’s 28.6. FLC made only 1-of-10 shots from 3-point distance, while the Mavericks made 5-of-24.

“I’m not frustrated; not mad at the way we played. It’s just disappointing the ball didn’t go in the basket more,” Flores said. “It’s really the only thing that kept us from winning the game.”

Redshirt freshman center Lynette Hepa helped FLC keep the game close in he first half. In a two-minute stretch, she had five rebounds, four points and a blocked shot. She finished with a team-high nine rebounds and added seven points.

The Skyhawks have short time to get ready for a team that plays a completely different style than Colorado Mesa, as they will host Western State at 3 p.m. Sunday.

“It’s a little problematic. We get geared up for one thing and have to turn around and quickly changes gears to a lot more drives and (isolations), and defensively we have to be very disciplined,” Flores said.

Despite the 1-3 start in conference, Flores expects his team to continue to improve and be in the mix for a conference tournament spot. That belief is fueled by knowing his team already has faced three of the toughest teams in the league.

“Five (Mesa) credit. They’re gonna be there in the end, but you know what, so are we,” Flores said.

jlivingston@durangoherald.com

Dec 20, 2014
Skyhawks sunk by the 3


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