FORT LEWIS
STATS  |  VIDEO

WESTERN COLORADO
STATS  |  VIDEO

GAME NOTES

CANYON, Texas – The Lady Buffs of West Texas A&M kickoff their 2021 campaign this weekend with a trip up to Colorado to face a pair of schools from the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference. 

WT faces Fort Lewis for a 10th time in program history on Friday, Sept. 3, at FLC Dirks Field in Durango, Colo. Kickoff is scheduled for 2 p.m CT. They will face Western Colorado on Sunday, Sept. 5, in a neutral site match up in Durango. 
 
WT SEASON PREVIEW
The Lady Buffs return 10 starters from last year's squad that went 6-4-0 overall and 6-2-0 against NCAA Division II in the spring. They were also picked to finish third in the Lone Star Conference Preseason Poll (we will touch more on that later). 
 
Hannah Kelley-Lusk leads a Lady Buff attack that averaged 2.4 goals per game in the spring. The Farmington, N.M. native was named one of the league's Forward of the Year after netting nine goals and a pair of assists She has found the back of the net 31 times during her time in Canyon, the fourth-most in program history. 
 
Asha James, an All-American javelin thrower, will be joined in the midfield by Jessica Diaz. James was named the league's Newcomer of the Year after compiling 11 points including four goals. Diaz has had one of the more underrated careers in program history as the Amarillo native quietly ranks 11th in career assists with 15. 
 
The defense is anchored by the 2018 LSC Defensive Player of the Year, Cheyenne Orozco. The senior has started in a whopping 72 games since stepping onto campus in 2017. She will be joined Emily Avila and Reagan Matacale.
 
Reagan Heelan and Daniela Estrada both saw times between the pipes in the spring with Heelan starting in nine of the 10 games. The Kearney, Neb. native made 32 saves a true freshman while Estrada had seven stops in 151 minutes of action. 
 
A LOOK AT FORT LEWIS
FLC was selected to finish fifth in the RMAC preseason coaches poll after going 4-2-3 in the spring and hosting the program's first playoff game since 2013. The Skyhawks are led by Damian Clarke, who returned to FLC in 2018. 
 
The Skyhawks return 20 student-athletes from the spring including Katherine Dunbabin. The junior goalkeeper started in all nine games in the spring recording a .857 save percentage and three shutouts. 
 
Katie Smith is the reigning RMAC Defensive Player of the Year as she anchored a defense that finished fourth in the conference in goals-against average. 
 
The attack is led by Aubrey Swindle, who scored a team-high four goals on 23 shoots in the spring. She was also on of three freshman to earn First Team All-RMAC accolades.
 
THE SERIES
The Lady Buffs are 8-1-0 all-time against FLC including a perfect 4-0-0 record in Durango. Their last meeting on Sept. 12, 2019 was ruled a no contest due to continuous lightning strikes with the Skyhawks leading 4-3. 
 
A LOOK AT WESTERN STATE
Western Colorado returns 13 student-athletes from a team that went 1-8-0 in the spring including Jessie Jacobsen and Caileen Sienknecht. They were picked to finish 11th in the RMAC Preseason Poll. 
 
The Mountaineers are led by second-year head coach Amanda Raso, who previously spent two years as the goalkeepers coach at North Dakota. 
 
Jacobsen scored a team-high two goals for the Mountaineers as the senior from Overland Park, Kan. scored a brace in a 3-1 victory over Colorado Christian. 
 
Abby Raio started in all nine games in defense in the spring along with fellow sophomore Mary Wilson, who bossed around the midfield. 
 
THE SERIES
Sunday's game will be the first all-time meeting between the programs. WT is 81-43-33 all-time against schools from the RMAC. 
 
LSC PRESEASON POLL
No. 7 Dallas Baptist was picked to win the LSC with 18 of thee 32 first-place votes followed by Angelo State, who beat the Patriots in the LSC Championship in the spring. The Lady Buffs were picked third with St. Edward's in fourth and Texas A&M-Commerce in fifth. 
 
Lubbock Christian comes in at sixth with Texas Woman's, St. Mary's, Texas A&M International, Midwestern State, UT Tyler, Eastern New Mexico, Oklahoma Christian and UT Permian Basin rounding out the poll. 
 
NO. 22 IN THE ROSTER, NO. 1 IN THE RECORD BOOKS
Orozco enters Friday's season opener as the program's leader in minutes played with 6,641. The 2018 LSC Defensive Player of the Year passed Taylor Cromeens' previous record in the opening minutes of the Lady Buffs semifinal showdown against DBU. 
 
The Rio Rancho, N.M. native is just one of four players in program history to play over 6,000 minutes.