by Angela Roberts
DENVER, Colo. – A second-half comeback fell short for the Skyhawks women’s basketball team in a 71-66 loss to MSU Denver on Saturday night at the Auraria Event Center.
The loss moved Fort Lewis to 7-13 overall and 4-10 in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference while MSU Denver improves to 10-10 on the year at 8-6 in league play.
The Skyhawks shot 43.4 percent (23-of-53) from the field and 26.1 percent (6-of-23) from deep for the night. The Roadrunners shot 38.9 percent (21-of-54) from the field and 44 percent (11-of-25) from beyond the arc. Fort Lewis had 11 steals and 12 points off turnovers for the game.
Freshman Lanae Billy had 27 points to lead the team in her eighth 20-plus point game of the season. Junior Kelsey Sorenson followed with a season-high 23 points and 14 rebounds—her fifth double-double of the season and third in as many games.
The first 90 seconds of play were scoreless before a free throw chance kick started an offensive surge, resulting in a 7-2 Roadrunners lead. Billy and Sorenson combined on a trio of possessions to give Fort Lewis its first lead at 8-7 with 4:30 on the clock. Three-point makes, two in favor of the opposition, closed out the first quarter with the score in favor of MSU Denver, 17-13.
Sophomore Sadie Misner opened the second quarter with her first made bucket of the game to pull the Skyhawks within one, and Billy followed it up with a layup to see a narrow 18-17 lead. The advantage remained until the 4:59 mark when MSU Denver connected on a layup to go ahead by one. The Roadrunners drained three-straight threes to secure a 10-point edge before a Sorenson layup slowed the roll. Freshman Kate Gallery dropped in a jumper to close out scoring for Fort Lewis in a 38-28 mark heading into half.
Billy showed her scoring prowess out of the intermission, scoring the half’s first seven points to pull the Skyhawks within four. Senior Tayla Nez made it a one-point game at the 5:32 mark with a trey, but the opposition responded with two straight to reclaim a five-point edge. The freshman duo of Billy and Gallery scored on back-to-back possessions, tying the game at 47’s and again at 49’s, before a four-point Roadrunners play switched the score.
Free throws opened the fourth quarter for both teams, including a pair from Sorenson knotted it up at 55-55 with six minutes remaining. MSU Denver benefited from another scoring run to go ahead by seven, and Billy attempted to counter with four points of her own to make it 65-62. Senior Alyssa Adams earned a last-minute three to make it a one-possession game, but MSU Denver closed it out with two made free throws to end it in a 71-66 final score.
