William G. Tierney Field, home of the new U.S. Lacrosse headquarters, set the stage for the first collegiate game to be played between DU and Princeton University on Saturday, Oct. 15. The Pioneers defeated the Tigers 16-8 in Sparks, Maryland, marking the first time DU Head Coach Bill Tierney faced his former team since taking the position at DU in 2008.
After leading the Pioneers to their first national championship title in 2015, Tierney became the first coach to win two titles at two different institutions. In 2002, Tierney was inducted into the National Lacrosse Hall of Fame. Despite his extensive successes and impact within the lacrosse world, Tierney continues to radiate humility, love for his players, admiration for his staff and passion for the sport itself.
“It’s neat, I’d be lying if I didn’t think it was–if I didn’t say it was exciting, humbling and very meaningful,” Tierney said of the field being named in his honor. “But most of all, I’m just thankful for thirty years at these two institutions, for all of the players, coaches and staff to have been with me and make something special like this happen.”
Without the pressure of reclaiming the national title and ending their season prematurely, the Pioneers looked to utilize their talent to build new success this year. Five All-Americans return, including Tewaaraton Award Finalist Connor Cannizzaro (Cazenovia, New York) and faceoff specialist Trevor Baptiste (Denville, New Jersey).
“We feel like we need to take advantage of the great player we’ve got at the faceoff x [Baptiste]. With that in mind, we’re going to try to play a little bit faster and get more shots,” said Tierney. “We’re trying different combinations, we’ve got some new people that are going to be very good, that are moving other people in and out of different spots. As much as you hate to lose at the end of the year, there’s always a new energy when you come back four months later.”
Denver welcomes a 15-man freshman class, including 2016 USA Today All-USA Boys Lacrosse Player of the Year Ethan Walker (Peterborough, Ontario). Additional talented, youthful returners include sophomores Colton Jackson (Highlands Ranch, Colorado), Dylan Johnson (Englewood, Colorado), Alex Ready (Lancaster, Pennsylvania), Dylan Gaines (Baltimore, Maryland), Austin French (Danville, California) and Nate Marano (Tustin, California), who all earned playing time during their freshmen campaigns.
“We’ve got great senior leadership now. We’ve got two really good young [freshmen and sophomore] classes. The attitude in the locker room has been great,” Tierney said. “We’ve never worked this hard physically in the fall. Matt Van Dyke, our conditioning coach, has put these guys through a lot more than they ever have [done], both from a conditioning and a strength standpoint.”
Denver returns to Peter Barton Field for its second fall exhibition game against Team Canada on Saturday, Oct. 22 at 1 p.m. Former Pioneers Mark Matthews (Oshawa, Ontario), Wesley Berg (Coquitlam, B.C.), Dillon Roy (Denver) and Jeremy Noble (Orangeville, Ontario) will suit up for Team Canada.
