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The Pioneers earned a 17-13 victory over the Major League Lacrosse Denver Outlaws in the third annual Colorado Lacrosse Showcase Saturday afternoon at the Peter Barton Lacrosse Stadium, ending their fall practice season.
The first half featured four lead changes as the teams battled back and forth. Sophomore Jeremy Noble opened the game with an unassisted goal. After the Outlaws scored two to take the lead, senior Mark Mathews and junior Chase Carraro answered back with two goals.
The Outlaws then outscored the Pioneers 5-1, taking a 7-4 lead. However, the scoring for the half was not finished, and the Pioneers found a hole in the Outlaw defense, scoring four more goals to take an 8-7 halftime lead.
“We got down 7-4, and I thought we showed pretty good resolve going back to 8-7 and getting that lead,” said head coach Bill Tierney.
The second half belonged to the Pioneers, as they jumped out with four unanswered goals, providing the spark to outscore the Outlaws 9-6. Senior Alex Demopoulos ended the game with the team highs in goals (4) and assists (4). Junior Eric Law added three goals and an assist to help propel the Pioneers to a victory.
The idea for this matchup was formulated in the fall of 2009 and has proved beneficial to both teams.
“The idea really came from coach Tierney two falls ago when he was first hired,” said Alex Smith, who stepped in as the general manager and head coach for the Outlaws for the scrimmage. “I love this scrimmage. It’s been a great showcase for the sport of lacrosse in Colorado. As a native of Colorado, I’ve seen firsthand the level of play growing here in the state and that goes hand in hand with programs like the Outlaws and DU continually reaching out to the community and bringing the whole level of lacrosse to a higher ground.”
The game featured a return of three former Pioneers to the Peter Barton Lacrosse Stadium as members of the Outlaws. Dillon Roy, Jordan Hendry and Andrew Lay all took advantage of the opportunity to return to their alma mater and play against their former teammates and coach.
“Dillon Roy is really starting to break out as a long-stick midfielder in the MLL. He is tough, physical, smart and scrappy – really everything you could ask for out of a player at this level. We see him being a big part of the Outlaws for years,” said Smith.
“Both Jordan Hendry and Andrew Lay are terrific talents with a lot of athleticism. Andrew is just such a terrific shooter and offensive player and Jordan is relentless in the way he approaches the game.”
Tierney said he will be pushing his team hard to get the Pioneers back to where they were at the end of last season, when they lost to the University of Virginia in the Final Four of the NCAA Division I men’s lacrosse tournament.
“I know Coach Tierney and the staff are going to be hammering on the fundamentals of the game to these guys, because you can’t go anywhere until you have that foundation. You have to build it from the ground up every year; it doesn’t just come to you because you were good last year. I am definitely looking forward to what they can accomplish in 2012,” said Smith.
After an extended period of time off, the Pioneers will travel to Orlando to take on the U.S. National Team in the 2012 Champion Challenge on Jan. 29.
