Men’s basketball signs LeBato
Men’s basketball coach Joe Scott announced that forward Matt LeBato signed a national letter of intent to play for DU last Wednesday.
LeBato, a 6-foot-8 forward from Sulphur, La., will play for the Pioneers in the 2010-2011 season and will join Chris Udofia as the team’s second incoming freshman.
LeBato became a dominant player under the tutelage of his father Clint LeBato, who is the men’s basketball coach at Sulpher High School.
In his senior year, Lebato led his team to a 30-6 record, which concluded in a one-point loss in the Louisiana 5A quarterfinals.
The versatile forward played both guard and forward in high school and earned First Team All-District honors in junior and senior seasons.
In his final year of high school he scored 14.9 points per game, while grabbing 7.2 rebounds per game. In addition, he added 3.5 assists and 2.1 blocks per game.
Udofia, a 6-foot-6 forward, played his high school ball at Jesuit Prep High School in Dallas, where he was named to the First Team All-District. The recruit was also awarded the District Defensive Player of the Year.
Lebato and Udofia add versatility and size to a Pioneer squad that is returning nearly all of its players.
The Pioneers will graduate star guard Nate Rohnert and reserve guard Tom Chott next month.
Men’s lacrosse adds 11 players for 2011 season
With 10 seniors departing from the men’s lacrosse team at the conclusion of this season, the Pioneers coaching staff announced the signings of 11 players to national letters of intent for the 2011 season last Wednesday.
The recruit class includes Harrison Archer, Harley Brown, Jamie Faus, Michael Pirone, JP Shipley, Jeremy Noble, Paul Danko, John Zurlo, Nick Perfido, Cole Nordstrom and Matt Kramer.
Faus, a goalie from Lakeville, Conn., is the prize recruit of the class and will look to compete for a starting position with sophomore Zander Buteux and freshman Troy Orzech next season.
The trio will look to replace starting goalie Peter Lowell, who graduates at the end of the season, and the teams backup goalie, Peyton Tyrie.
Archer, Noble, Purone and Danko are all attackmen and will join an already deep attack unit composed of Todd Baxter, Mark Matthews and Alex Demopoulos.
Noble, an Orangellive, Ontario native, will become the third Canadian member of the team, joining Matthews and freshman Cameron Flint.
Shipley, Perfido and Nordstrom also provide the Pioneers with offensive depth and talent.
On defense, the Pioneers graduate their entire starting line and will welcome newcomers like Brown, Kramer and Zurlo to compete for a starting position, while they rebuild the Pioneers back line next season.