DENVER – Air Force really never had a chance. Trevor Baptiste was on fire both at the X and in the offensive half of the field and he nearly singlehandedly ended the Falcons’ season as his 5th-seeded University of Denver Pioneers topped the Air Force Academy 17-10. Continue reading Trevor Baptiste dominates as Pioneers shoot down Falcons in NCAA First Round
When you look at Connor Cannizzaro and Ethan Walker, you’d be forgiven if you give a double-take. The manner in which the two present themselves, their dialect, and their physical appearance translate to the field. If it weren’t for their jerseys, No. 40 worn by Cannizzaro and No. 57 sported by Walker, it’d be nearly impossible to tell them apart thanks to their nearly identical playing styles. Continue reading Brotherhood on the attack: Connor Cannizzaro and Ethan Walker share a unique bond
Voluntarily subjecting one’s body to a solid rubber ball, facing shots that reach over 100 miles per hour, while wearing the only additional protection of a throat and chest protector, all to protect a six-foot by six-foot and seven-foot deep cage, requires a uniquely-oriented individual. Continue reading Between the pipes, Pioneers are Ready for deep postseason run
There’s still one week left in the regular season, but the #2 University of Denver Pioneers men’s lacrosse team now knows it will be the #1 seed for the BIG EAST Conference Tournament in Providence. Thanks to a 12-2 victory over the only team that could catch them in the standings and the hosts of the conference tournament, the Providence College Friars. Continue reading Pioneers clinch #1 seed in BIG EAST Tournament with Senior Day win over Providence
Denver-Notre Dame. It’s never a straightforward 10-7 game when these two teams meet. It always comes down to the final seconds and, recently, it’s always taken overtime. It seemed like that was going to happen again today as it was tied 10-10 in the waning seconds of the game, but the #5 University of Denver Pioneers’ Connor Cannizzaro had a different idea as he scored with the clock reading 0:00. Continue reading Cannizzaro’s last-second heroics lift Denver over Notre Dame in instant classic
Tyler Pace returned to the field, Ethan Walker netted a hat trick, and that’s about all that went well for the #1 University of Denver Pioneers today as they fell 13-9 to the #6 North Carolina Tarheels at Peter Barton Lacrosse Stadium. Denver was never competitive and the Tarheels led the game wire to wire. Continue reading Pioneers suffer “setback” in 13-9 loss to North Carolina
Creating a dominant, lethal defense, capable of shutting down opposing attacks with force and strategy is a science. The iterative process through trial and error to identity the balance between tenacity and tactic, University of Denver defensive coordinator John Orsen has created such.
Through a new system of “controlled aggressiveness” introduced this season, Orsen has revamped Denver’s defensive style of play. Continue reading “Controlled aggressiveness” guides Denver’s top defensive line
It may not have been made for television, and thank goodness it wasn’t televised, but the #1 University of Denver Pioneers rose above sloppy play and took advantage of many mistakes made by the Cleveland State Vikings to win 19-6 at Peter Barton Lacrosse Stadium. Continue reading Denver dominates Cleveland State 19-6 in sloppy game
At this very moment on Feb. 20, 2017, for the first time in history, our two flagship sports, ice hockey and men’s lacrosse, are both ranked #1 in the country in all the major polls of those two sports.
For our small private school in the Rockies with 5,500 undergrads and a budget 1/10th the size of some of the large D-I football powers, with our opponents spread out all over the country and requiring jet planes to get to 85% of DU away games, this is an astonishing, epic achievement.
Additionally, our men’s soccer team finished #3 in the country this fall. And our women’s gymnastics team is currently ranked #8 in the country, the highest the program has ever been ranked. And DU women’s lacrosse is undefeated this year and ranked #14/15 in the country. And our nationally ranked swim teams (#20 men’s and #26 women’s) just swept the podium in EVERY EVENT at the Summit League Championships last week.
I say all this because we need to take a moment to realize just how frickin’ good our athletics program is right now. No program in the country gets better performance for the buck than DU does. And now is the time to tell your friends from bigger schools that the Pioneers are on top of the country in two sports. Let’s hope both can end their seasons with a National Championship.
For those of us oldsters who remember the days when DU played hockey in a decrepit old WWII surplus naval drill hall and DU lacrosse played mostly clubs and small colleges on muddy fields in front of 50 people, we can only say how proud we are to see just how far DU has come as a national sports power.
Go Pios!
It appears the #3 University of Denver Pioneers may have turned the page on their struggles in the third quarter in 2016. Today, against the #17 Air Force Falcons, the Pios scored five goals in the third quarter, including three in the final 17 seconds, to take control of a surprisingly close game. They didn’t look back as they coasted to a dominant 14-6 victory. Continue reading Cannizzaro, Walker star in Denver’s 14-6 victory over Air Force
