As usual, we are encouraging everyone to participate in One Day for DU again this year. We believe your dollars would be wisely spent on DU athletics – they recently earned an  unprecedented 10th Director’s Cup and continue to be the highest performing Division on campus.

See their 2018 highlights below:

But there are also other athletes on campus representing Pioneer Nation with DU on their chest. And, they often give their blood, sweat, and tears on the roads, fields, and ice – and often out with cash out of their own pockets.

We need to help.

We want to point out a few DU Sports Clubs which have garnered local, regional and national success. With a successful DI Athletic Department, DU’s Club Sports often fly under the radar – and we hope you give to them as well. There are 34 sports clubs at DU and we are highlighting four of our favorites below. 

CLUB WOMEN’S LACROSSE

Background: One of DU’s most accomplished and worthy clubs is Women’s Lacrosse. They are a member of the Women’s Collegiate Lacrosse Association (WCLA) Division II. All they have done is win  back-to-back Division II National Champions (2016 and 2017). And this year, they made it to the finals again and lost a tough championship final against Loyola-Marymount.

Why support DU Women’s Lacrosse? President Caroline Murphy tells LetsGoDU, “Having made it to the WCLA National Championship three years in a row, there is a significant chance (90%) that our club team will be moved up from the DII division to the DI division for the 2018-2019 season. In this case, we will be traveling more frequently as well as further than our previous seasons, resulting in increased transportation costs, hotel costs, and player dues. If we received donations from One-Day at DU each provider would be significantly helping our team in the transition between DII and DI divisions. Your donations will go toward tournament fees, transportation and hotel costs, as well as allowing the opportunity for new girls to participate. We play lacrosse for the love of the sport and supporting our team through fundraising, donations, and the help of Club Sports. For us, a little goes a long way and each donation allows our team to progress and compete at the next level. Thank you for all your support!”

Women’s lacrosse success should be recognized and rewarded. As one of DU’s most committed and successful teams, they deserve some Pioneer love – and our dollars. And, we all know that travel to regional and national tournaments costs money for travel, room and board.

CLUB FIGURE SKATING

Background: If we told you about a DU team that practiced five days a week on skates you would think DU hockey, right? Think again. The answer is DU figure skating. They compete in the Pacific Coast Sectional within US Figure Skating’s Intercollegiate Team Skating Program. They have won sectionals and placed skaters in the top 10 nationally. Even better, they travel to Colorado Springs and pull the Tiger’s tail every year.

Why support DU Figure Skating? They need money to travel regionally and nationally to compete at various invitational events – Golden Bear Skate (Cal), Ram Classic (Fort Collins) and Colorado Springs. They host the Pioneer Open and put on a fantastic annual show with the DU hockey team as guest performers. All this requires commitment and yes, you guessed it, $$$. Club President Morgan ‘Mo’ Windmueller and former club President Anna Williams told LetsgoDU they they need our help to, “Pay our coaches, allow our skaters to travel to competitions so we can keep doing awesomely!, allow our skaters to stay in hotels at said competitions, pay for gear we wear to represent our school when we travel, buy ice time and pay for bonding activities that we do to keep our team warm, welcome, and fun!”  We can’t think of a single reason to NOT support this accomplished club.

CLUB RUGBY

Background: Club Rugby has a rich tradition on the Denver campus. They have been around for 50 years and just held a large alumni celebration this past season. They compete in the National Small College Rugby Organization (NSCRO), where they play regional powers and compete nationally as well. For the past six years they have had 100% of their full-time staff (as well as student-athletes) make a donation back to DU. Maybe it is time for us to give back to them.

Why support DU Rugby? First of all, they have to play the Barbarians – that should be enough for us to want to arm the team. They are entrepreneurial, too. They have secured local sponsors to defray some of their expenses – but trips, such as their recent trek to California with their team, equipment and lodging expenses make tackling and scrumming a costly venture. But their sponsorships alone do not come close to covering their expenses. We know these guys and think DU Rugby is a great investment – and they are great representatives for DU.

Says Club President Louis Bogolub, “This year our team had nearly $90,000 in expenses, while we only received $4,925 in funding from the school. This spending goes to a wide variety of things, such as plane tickets, team busses, food and lodging for away games, paying our medical staff, and referees. Being that NSCRO is a country wide league, travel is inherently a large part of our budget. Without donations we would not be able to compete in national tournaments. An example of this would be competing in the Pac-West tournament this spring, where we flew to LA to play against schools like The Claremont Colleges, and University of California Maritime, for a chance to play in the NSCRO final four. Another expense for our team that I think is worth highlighting is our medical staff. We are incredibly lucky to have our trainer Amie Kern. She has worked for USA rugby at international level tournaments, and her skill and knowledge as an athletic trainer not only helps us to be ready for gameday, but also to be safe and healthy in an inherently dangerous sport. This rugby team has been the most challenging, most fun, and most rewarding part of my college experience, and donations like that the one that you are considering are what have made it possible.”

And this club thinks big, too. They started a club endowment at their 50th Anniversary Banquet. Zach Ziegler, a player on the team reminds us, “For those interested in supporting our new Rugby endowment, there is a giving form that can be completed and returned to the club. ” The endowment is separate from your One Day For DU gift.

CLUB CYCLING

Background: Started in 2007, Denver’s men’s and women’s cycling team compete on mountain bike races in the fall and road races in may. The team competes in USA Cycling’s Collegiate Division and competes in time trials, road races and criteriums. They have placed riders in national ‘A’ races and give the University visibility in local races.

Why support DU Cycling Club? They need our support to enter and travel to local, regional and national events. All competing members receive a racing kit, team apparel, partial or full race entry fee reimbursement, and access to team training sessions. All this costs money!

These athletes have the Pioneer spirit and have built life-long friendships at DU that will carry over to life-long connections to DU. So, they play a critical role in building DU spirit at DU now and in the future.

Today, please think about directing your gifts to these teams as well as other DU Club Sports.