Zias Rally from 13-Point Halftime Deficit
to Claim 57-53 Win over Fort Lewis
ENMU Holds Skyhawks to 21.1% Shooting in Second Half

Box Score

PORTALES, N.M. — Senior forward Mika Robertson (Levelland, TX/Midland College) scored a career-high 19 points and grabbed a team-high 8 rebounds, leading Eastern New Mexico University to a 57-53 come-from-behind victory over visiting Fort Lewis College, Nov. 15, in the season-opener for both teams. Robertson scored 10 points in the second half, as the Zias rallied from a 37-24 halftime deficit.

Fort Lewis hit 8 of 14 three-pointers in the first half (57.1%), including four in the first 7:09 to take a 14-5 lead. The Zias ran off the next nine points, the last three on a trifecta by Robertson to tied the score, 14-14. FLC countered with a 5-0 run, but the game was tied, 21-21, at the 4:14 mark. The Skyhawks used three 3-pointers on a 13-2 run for a 34-23 lead with 1:41 left in the half.

Tia Doss (Jr., F, Albuquerque, NM/Highland HS) hit one of two free throws with 49 seconds left to cut the lead to 10, but Nicole Quast of Fort Lewis was fouled on a 3-point shot with 0.5 seconds remaining. She made all three charity shots, giving FLC a 37-24 advantage at the break.

Eastern provided better outside pressure in the second half, and the Skyhawks weren’t nearly as accurate on their 3-point tries over the final 20 minutes. Fort Lewis made just 2 of 11 three-pointers in the second half (18.2%). After shooting 40.0% overall (12 of 30) in the first half, the Skyhawks made just 4 of 19 shots (21.1%) in the second half.

The Zias opened the second half with an 11-0 run that cut the Fort Lewis lead to 37-35 after Robertson scored consecutive three-pointers, the latter occurring at the 14:34 mark. The Skyhawks regained a six-point lead, 43-37, with 10:29 left, but Robertson canned another 3-pointer to reduce the lead to three-points. Eastern moved in front for good on a layup by Doss with 8:08 remaining in the game.

ENMU held a 50-45 advantage following a layup by Dynesha Johnson (Jr., Post, Omaha, NE/ North Platte CC) with 5:06 to play, and the Zias led by six points, 55-49, after a pull-up jumper by Laci Lee (Sr., G, Portales, NM/Portales HS) with 2:35 to go.

Amie Moulton made two free throws for FLC with 2:07 left, and Erin O’Connor connected on two free throws with 1:02 remaining, as Fort Lewis cut the lead to two points, 55-53. Neither team scored until the closing seconds, but the Skyhawks had a chance to tie or take the lead after Moulton rebounded a missed one-and-one free throw by Robertson with 19 seconds left. Fort Lewis called timeout with 14 seconds to go, but never got off a shot when play resumed.

Quest lost the ball near the left-side block with four seconds left and the Zias took over out of bounds. Heather Brown (So., G, Hereford, TX/Hereford HS) threw the in-bounds pass long to Lee, who hauled in the ball to the right of Eastern’s three-point line. She dribbled the ball back toward the mid-court stripe and was fouled by Jamie Pratt with 1.5 seconds left. Lee hit both free throws to clinch the win.

Robertson’s 19 points led all players in scoring. Her previous career high at ENMU was eight points, which she recorded on two occasions last year. Her eight rebounds left her one rebound short of her career high of nine, set in last year’s loss to the Skyhawks.

Tiana Bryant (Jr., Post, Roswell, NM/University of New Mexico) added 12 points and seven rebounds, while Doss and Lee each scored nine points. Lee scored all nine points in the second half. Doss, Bryant and Brown contributed three steals apiece, leading the Zias to 11 steals overall.

The Zias shot just 37.5% (9 of 24) in the first half, including 1 of 7 on three-pointers. In the second half, Eastern shot 52.2% (12 of 22) and hit 4 of 7 three-pointers. Robertson was 4 of 8 on three-pointers on the night.

Both teams struggled at hanging onto the ball. Fort Lewis committed 30 turnovers, including 19 in the second half, while the Zias lost the ball 24 times. FLC claimed a 36-28 edge on the boards.

Amy Mohr, a three-time First Team All-RMAC selection who scored 20 points and grabbed 10 rebounds in last year’s win over the Zias, earned seven points and six boards before fouling out with 3:18 left in the rematch. The Skyhawks were led by Quast with 15 points and six boards. Moulton added 13 points. Pratt led Fort Lewis with four assists, and also contributed four rebounds.

Fort Lewis qualified for the NCAA Tournament for the first time in 2003-04 and finished the year with a 23-8 overall record. The Skyhawks won the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Western Division title with a 15-4 record. Fort Lewis defeated ENMU, 63-60, on Nov. 22, 2003, in the title match of the Grand Canyon University Classic.

The Zias were 16-12 in 2003-04 and qualified for the Lone Star Conference Tournament. Eastern was part of a three-way tie for second place in the LSC South with a 10-4 record, one game behind LSC South champion West Texas A&M (11-3).

ENMU returns to action on Friday, Nov. 19, against the University of Nebraska-Kearney at the Al Kaly Shrine Classic. Game time is set for 1 p.m. MST. The Zias will conclude the Classic on Saturday, Nov. 20, against host Colorado State University-Pueblo at 5 p.m.