by By Angela Roberts
GUNNISON, Colo. – The Fort Lewis College volleyball team got back in the win column on Tuesday evening with a straight-set win over Western Colorado University.
Fort Lewis improved to 8-9 overall and 3-4 in Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference action while Western Colorado dropped to 3-14 on the year and 1-6 in league play.
“This was a game of discipline for us. We had to execute the details in order to come out on top,” said head coach Giedre Tarnauskaite. “Our blocking put a lot of pressure on their offense, and we were relentless on defense.”
The Skyhawks had one of their more well-rounded outings of the year, hitting .276 on the night to go along with 52 digs, seven blocks, and four service aces. The Mountaineers were limited to a .144 efficiency on the night.
Junior Alexis Hobie led the team with 11 kills, her seventh double-digit match of the season. Seniors Lauren Shea and JJ Curry followed with nine kills while combining for 22 digs. Junior Natalia Lambos guided the offense with 32 assists to go along with nine digs. Junior Sarah Wilkey added 10 digs and now had double-digit digs in all but two matches this season.
“Sarah did an excellent job reading their setter and picking up tips. I’m also happy with our offense, and Natalia distributed the sets very well. Our attackers were successful tonight, and it’s a credit to her,” acknowledged Tarnauskaite.
In the first set, the Skyhawks saw an early deficit at 10-8. The home team extended their brief lead, but Fort Lewis responded with a late push to tie it at 18-all. The run, fueled by Shea at the service line, saw a pair of kills from sophomore Ella Butler and was capped off with an ace. The Mountaineers earned a side out, and the teams traded points to become knotted at 23-23. Fort Lewis benefitted from a service error, and Wilkey secured the set with an ace.
The teams kept the score close to begin the second set, but a three-point run had Fort Lewis ahead 10-7. Western Colorado got one back, but the Skyhawks tacked onto the lead to make it 15-11. The Mountaineers pulled within one point at 17-16, but the Skyhawks came back with a 5-0 run to go up 22-16. Hobie put away a kill to make it 23-17, and Western Colorado committed a pair of errors to wrap up the set.
The Skyhawks got ahead in the final set thanks to a 4-0 run with Shea at the service line, making it a 9-6 score. The lead was extended midway through the set with a kill by Butler and freshman Logan Spragg seeing the score at 15-9. Fort Lewis enjoyed another scoring run to see an eight-point advantage, earning kills from Curry and Hobie. The match was closed out with a kill by Lambos and two Western Colorado attacking errors to secure a road sweep.
