Denver men’s lacrosse (2-2) took on Jacksonville (4-1) at Peter Barton Stadium Saturday afternoon. The surprising Dolphins came into Denver riding signature wins over Duke and Marquette. Denver played JU even, taking a lead early in the second half, but the Dolphins took full advantage of their scoring chances to win 11-9. Ground ball dominance (+20) and shooting efficiency were the determining factors in JU’s win.

DU fell behind early in the first period, 4-2 with Ted Sullivan and Jack Hannah scoring Denver goals.

Sullivan scored again in the second quarter along with Jake Edinger but Denver trailed at halftime, 5-4.

A pair of Jack Hannah goals in the third quarter gave DU an early lead in the second half. However, Jacksonville reeled off three consecutive goals to take an 8-6 advantage on won faceoffs and ground balls. The teams traded goals before the third quarter with Riley Curtis scoring on an assist from Jack Hannah.

Jacksonville scored the first two goals to open the final quarter to build an 11-7 lead and coasted to the final score, 11-9, with late goals by DU’s Sullivan and Hannah.

Denver was haunted, yet again, on ground balls, as JU had 42 to Denver’s 22. The ground ball deficit was more than enough to thwart any comeback hopes that Denver had on the day. JJ Sillstrop was held to one assist by the Dolphins who paid special attention to #5. Jack Hannah had 4 goals and an assist. Ted Sullivan netted 3 goals. Jacob Greiner led the Dolphins with 6 goals.

It’s a quick turnaround for DU with a game against Canisius on Sunday at 11 am MT.

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Note: We would be remiss if we did not mention undefeated DU women’s lacrosse (4-0). We told you about their win over Stanford but since that time they have rolled over Cal (15-5) and Ohio State (12-5). Veterans Bea Behrins and Julia Gilbert and freshman star Lauren Black are leading the charge for Denver. They have a three-game homestand starting with UC Davis on Friday, March 4th at Peter Barton Stadium.