Would the LA Dodgers baseball team ever willingly jettison their famous lettering on their uniform chest?
Two words: Hell. No. Continue reading No! New University Logo to Replace Arched Denver
Tag Archives: Denver Sports
A Five Point Fan Wish List for DU’s Next Athletic Director
As DU winds down the current athletic year and Denver Vice Chancellor for Athletics and Recreation Karlton Creech prepares to depart for the next chapter in his career, we die-hard fans at LetsGoDU have our wish list for the next athletic director, whomever it may be.
Here are our wishes, in rough order of priority: Continue reading A Five Point Fan Wish List for DU’s Next Athletic Director
Damien Goddard: First in Space for DU
The inimitable Damien Goddard, the founder of LetsGoDU, was recognized Wednesday by the University of Denver as the first DU graduate venturing to space. Following in the footsteps of Jeff Bezos, Elon Musk and William Shatner, Goddard will be blasting into the great unknown on January 15th, 2022. Goddard’s travel was booked through Elon Musk’s Space Perspective company at a cost of $125,000. Continue reading Damien Goddard: First in Space for DU
Adler’s Goal Lifts Pioneers to 1-0 win over Kent State Golden Flashes
Senior Hannah Adler (Oak Park, Calif.) came through with her third goal in two games, scoring the only goal of the contest, at 38:41 of the first half to lift the Denver Pioneers to a 1-0 shutout of the Kent State Golden Flashes from the Mid-America Conference (MAC) on Aug. 31st at the Denver soccer stadium. The win was Denver’s fourth shutout in a row, and kept DU undefeated at 3-0-1 on the young season.
Kent State, who pushed CU last Thursday in Boulder before falling 2-1, fell to 0-3-1 overall with the loss to Denver. Continue reading Adler’s Goal Lifts Pioneers to 1-0 win over Kent State Golden Flashes
Radochonski Powers Denver to 11-10 OT Upset of USC Trojans in NCAA First Round
The #17th-ranked University of Denver women’s lacrosse team upset the #13th-ranked University of Southern California, 11-10 in a dramatic overtime finish in Ann Arbor, Mich. to advance to the second round of the 2019 NCAA Tournament.
“I’m really proud of our fight today,” said DU head coach Liza Kelly after the game. “This is what we’ve been preparing for all year, and I think we came out ready to fight for that [NCAA Second Round] spot on Sunday.”
The late-game drama in Ann Arbor on Friday night was simply incredible. Continue reading Radochonski Powers Denver to 11-10 OT Upset of USC Trojans in NCAA First Round
DU to Host Free Pre-Game Party in Buffalo + TV Watch Parties Around the USA
The University of Denver is sponsoring a pre-game party in Buffalo, New York prior to Thursday’s NCAA Semi-Final between DU and the University of Massachusetts. DU is also sponsoring free TV watch Parties in selected large cities around the nation:
Pre-game reception:
Buffalo, NY
TV Watch Parties:
Denver
Chicago
San Francisco
Portland, Ore.
Seattle
Los Angeles
San Diego
Phoenix
New York City
Boston,
Old Greenwich, Conn.
Philadelphia
Washington, D.C.
Atlanta
For more information on party times and city TV party locations, and to register to attend, please follow this link:
Pioneer Lacrosse French-Fries North Carolina, 12-10
Senior attackman Austin French, who missed DU’s first four games of the season due to upper body injury, came back to the DU starting lineup with a vengeance to lift the eighth-ranked Pioneers (4-1) to 12-10 road victory over [15/20] North Carolina Tar Heels . The Pioneer road win ruined the christening of UNC’s brand new 4,000-seat Lacrosse and Soccer Stadium in Chapel Hill, N.C. on Saturday morning, Mar. 2.
French tied his career-high with a six point overall performance, and set a new career-high with five assists in the game to lead Denver. His ball distribution skills are critical to the flow of Denver’s offensive attack, and the Californian’s return to the lineup provided just the tonic DU needed to secure its first road win of the season. Continue reading Pioneer Lacrosse French-Fries North Carolina, 12-10
Pioneering Excellence this Winter
While men’s hockey and lacrosse take up the lion’s share of fan interest for most Pioneer fans, it’s important to recognize some other DU athletic teams who continue to climb higher into national prominence and greater conference impact:
- The 13th-ranked DU women’s lacrosse team beat its very first top five opponent since coach Liza Kelly took the helm in 2006, upsetting (#6/#4) Stony Brook (N.Y.) University, 11-7, behind Bea Behrins’ three-goal hat trick. This was a statement win for the program. The Pios have been a top-20 program for a while now, but have had trouble beating the very top echelon teams. Sunday’s win over SBU kept DU undefeated at 4-0 and may see the Pioneers knocking on the door of a top-10 ranking. The Michigan Wolverines come to town this Tuesday to face the surging Pioneers for a 12 noon start.
- The sixth-ranked DU women’s gymnastics team scored its second highest all-time score (and the highest score of this season) with a 197.725 on Sunday afternoon before over 4,000 fans at Magness Arena, to win the meet over Iowa State and Boise State. This kind of scoring should keep DU in the hunt for a top-five national ranking as the season moves into the stretch run.
- The DU men’s (#24th nationally) and (#47) women’s swim teams once again won the Summit League title for the sixth year in a row. DU was so dominant at the Summit League Championships that the DU women set an all-time league record for points, and DU mens and women swimmers won 37 of 38 of the swimming events overall. That’s an incredible achievement – perhaps the swimming equivalent of winning the Summit League basketball title game by 30 points, and repeating the winning margin for six straight years.
- DU women’s basketball (15-12, 8-6 Summit league) continued its rise into a winning program with a dramatic road win at North Dakota. Often-injured senior Pioneer Haley Simental hit the long-range three point shot-of-her-college-career to send the game into overtime at the buzzer, in a game that the Pios would later win, 92-91. With the OT win, the Pios’ have earned at least a top-five seed at the Summit League tournament next month.
- The DU women’s tennis team, ranked #40 nationally, are 7-2 this year in a sport where 317 teams compete nationally. DU has already defeated brand name schools such as Oregon, Wisconsin, BYU and Colorado this season.
All of these teams deserve our support, and we look forward to seeing how they compete in the coming months.
Pioneers Shoot Down ORU Golden Eagles for Second Summit League win in a row
The University of Denver Pioneer Men’s Basketball Team won its second Summit League game in a row, thumping the Oral Roberts University Golden Eagles, 74-58 at Magness Arena on Sunday, January 20th.
The Pioneers played another solid defensive game, holding the Golden Eagles to 34% shooting and making a crucial halftime double-team defensive adjustment to stop ORU’s hot-shooting freshman Kevin Obanor, who had torched the Pioneers for 15 first half points. Obanor had just two points in the second half, which opened the door for DU to cruise to a 40-point second half behind a balanced 53% shooting performance of its own.
Senior Joe Rosga hit his first five shots to set the tone for DU, finishing with a game-high 21 points. DU also got 13 points off the bench from freshman David Nzekwesi, who had his best all around game for DU, chipping in with four rebounds and two steals in his 24 minutes, playing in front of his injured (ankle) older brother, Emmanuel, who is a junior star for ORU (8-14).
Finally, DU guard Ade Murkey, after a terrible first half where he went scoreless and had four turnovers, came alive in the second half, scoring all 11 of his points and forcing the proverbial dagger into the Golden Eagles with a critical, driving three-point play with 6:35 left that pushed the Denver lead to 11 points, which seemed to break ORU’s spirit (see the play here).
Denver senior Ronnie Harrell, Jr. sat out today’s game with a minor strained knee ligament. He is expected back in the lineup soon, as well as Joe Lanzi, who sat out his second game with a broken finger.
The Pioneers started the game with a 10-0 opening lead on ORU but the Golden Eagles trailed the Pioneers by a bucket at halftime, 34-32.
The Pioneers (7-14) now face a tough road trip to Fort Wayne, Ind. to face the Summit League’s third-place Ft. Wayne Mastodons (12-9) on Saturday, January 26th.
Colorado Rapids Trade Up to Select Denver Star Andre Shinyashiki in First Round of MLS Superdraft
One of the University of Denver’s greatest-ever athletes, senior soccer striker Andre Shinyahshiki, was selected fifth overall in the First Round of the MLS Superdraft by the hometown side, the Colorado Rapids.
The most decorated student-athlete in program history, Shinyashiki’s senior offseason has seen him win the 2018 Senior CLASS Award, be named the United Soccer Coaches’ Scholar Athlete of the Year and earn MAC Hermann Trophy finalist honors.
Link to Shinyashiki’s Draft Day Interview
Shinyshiki, a first team all-American who led the nation in scoring this season (28 goals) and rewrote much of the DU soccer record book in the process, will join former DU teammate Kortne Ford on the Rapids’ roster. The Sao Paulo, Brazil-native has already signed an MLS contract and will join the Rapids in the pre-season camp on Jan. 21.
The Rapids, a club in dire need of goalscoring, have been following Shinyashiki’s progress at DU for four years now, and have also seen him play on the Rapids’ summer development team. The Rapids were apparently eager to sign Shinyashiki, trading up in the draft to get him, giving up the 15th pick in the first round and $100,000 of allocation money to the Chicago Fire in return for Chicago’s fifth overall first-round pick in this year’s draft. Additionally, the Rapids are also using one of a limited number of international MLS roster spots for the Brazilian Shinyashiki.
“We’re thrilled to get Andre,” Rapids Executive Vice President and general manager Pádraig Smith told Denver’s 9News, who has been following Shinyashiki’s career for the last few years. “He’s driven, coachable, and wants to be a top-level player. We believe he’s the best player in the draft and we’re very lucky to get him with the 5th pick.”
Smith added that he’s not just a top-class finisher, but it’s his intelligence and his mentality that make him the complete package, something he credits to DU head coach Jamie Franks and his staff.
“Coach Franks produces not just good players, but good men,” said Smith, listing out current Rapids and former Pioneer Kortne Ford as well as Sam Hamilton, who was released by Colorado last November.
“Our mission is to develop authentic leaders who strive to make the best version of themselves every day,” said Franks to 9News, who is also in Chicago for the SuperDraft
Shinyashiki made 83 appearances, including 67 starts, in his four-year Pioneer career, netting 51 goals and adding 15 assists. In 2018, Shinyashiki bagged 28 goals in 21 matches, including his first five career hat tricks and a four goal game in the Summit League opener at Omaha. Shinyashiki ranked first in the country in points per game (2.86), total points (60), goals per game (1.33), goals (28), game-winning goals (11) and shots on goal per game (2.86) this fall.
Shinyashiki is the latest of 10 Pioneers drafted by MLS teams in the last 11 seasons.
The Denver co-captain joins:
2019: Andre Shinyashiki (Colorado – 5th Overall)
2018: Graham Smith (Sporting Kansas City – 18th Overall)
2017: Reagan Dunk (Real Salt Lake – 13th Overall) and Sam Hamilton (Colorado – 15th Overall)
2015: Taylor Hunter (Houston – 49th Overall)
2014: Zach Bolden (Chicago – 61st Overall)
2013: Drew Beckie (Columbus – 28th Overall)
2011: Joe Willis (D.C. United – 50th Overall)
2010: Kris Banghart (Real Salt Lake – 64th Overall)
2009: Kyle Christensen (Chivas USA – 35th Overall)
In the last four seasons, both Ford (Colorado – 2017) and Jordan Schweitzer (Seattle – 2016) signed homegrown deals with their academy parents clubs prior to the draft.
We are also following DU senior Moshe Perez, who was among the 60 NCAA players selected for last week’s MLS Combine to see if he is selected in the final two rounds of the 2019 MLS Draft on Monday, Jan 14.