Fort Lewis College’s sports teams had a successful 2024. There’s no reason to think 2025 can’t be as successful or more successful.
In 2024, the Skyhawks men’s basketball team finished 29-4 overall and made it to the NCAA tournament. Men’s soccer made it to the NCAA tournament for the second consecutive year and the quarterfinals for the first time since 2011. Skyhawks women’s cross country made it to the national championships and the men were represented by junior Elijah Smith.
This year, FLC may not reach the heights in men’s basketball that it did in 2024, or the NCAA quarterfinals in men’s soccer, but it should be very well-rounded; a lot of teams have the chance to improve.
Football only won three games in 2024 but might’ve had the biggest improvement within a program at FLC. The Skyhawks went nearly five years without a win before it beat Arizona Christian on Sept. 14.
The Skyhawks have a great chance of improving on that win total in 2025. FLC football head coach Johnny Cox has some proof that his system and coaching style work. FLC should return its starting quarterback, top three running backs, top five wide receivers and top six tacklers on defense.
If all those players come back, the Skyhawks will have a returning core that’s rare to find in college football these days with the transfer portal and immediate eligibility out of the portal. Therefore, FLC could finish in the middle of the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference and maybe farther up if everything goes perfectly.
The women’s soccer team is on the rise after a phenomenal run to the RMAC tournament championship. FLC has had winning records in back-to-back years.
Skyhawks women’s soccer head Damian Clarke is one of FLC’s most experienced coaches and should return the Skyhawks’ top five point scorers in sophomore Ashlyn Salas (13 points from six goals, one assist), sophomore Abila Tapia (12 points from five goals, two assists), junior Josie Coulter (nine points from two goals, five assists), junior Abigail Nkrumah (nine points from three goals, three assists) and sophomore Haley Stafford (eight points from three goals, two assists).
The next step for the women’s soccer team could be a return to the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2015.
FLC’s women’s cross country team is also on the rise. After an NCAA championship appearance as a team, coach Gracen Key will be in her second year running the women’s cross country program and should return her top nine runners. She’s bringing in a large freshman class, which could have a few runners contribute right away.
The men’s cross country team, under coach Dalton Graham, should return the majority of their top runners, including NCAA championship participant Elijah Smith.
FLC women’s golf squad improved last season under head coach Shea Sena. The Skyhawks had their first individual medalist in junior Dimery Plewe since 2015. Plewe should return along with key contributors freshman Peyton Gibby and Sarah Grenemyer.
At 3-8 overall, Skyhawks women’s basketball hasn’t had the start to the 2024-2025 new head coach Lauren Zuniga wanted. But FLC has a chance to improve at the start of next season with only two seniors in the regular rotation. Zuniga also has more time to recruit and better understands the talent level of Division II women’s basketball and the RMAC.
While it’s impossible at 8-5 overall for FLC men’s basketball to do better than last year, the Skyhawks, under new head coach Jordan Mast, are on a three-game winning streak and have a chance to compete at the top of the RMAC. The Skyhawks could still make the NCAA tournament as a top-eight team in the South Central region.
FLC men’s soccer has had a great two-year run and it will be hard to get back to the NCAA tournament quarterfinal. But FLC men’s soccer head coach David Oberholtzer will enter his 10th season in 2025 as the Skyhawks head coach. FLC should return a lot of key players like Anton Hjalmarsson, David Citron and Lucas Martin. Oberholtzer and his staff have shown over the past few years that they can find elite freshmen from all over the world who can produce right away.
Along with all the returning pieces to all these teams, FLC Director of Athletics Travis Whipple is in his third academic year in the role and has a better understanding of the RMAC landscape and what it takes to compete at the top of Division II compared to when he first started.
FLC is also opening a new athletic training facility, which is important to the success of the current athletes and helps in recruiting since FLC’s facilities have been mediocre.
This could be a promising year for FLC fans with the new facilities, returning coaches and players. Plenty of these teams could soar “To the Top” and could “Graduate Champions”
bkelly@durangoherald.com
