The Denver Pioneers defeated the Marquette Golden Eagles Thursday 10-7 in the Big East semifinals and have advanced to the final, matching up with the Georgetown Hoyas tomorrow at 12 p.m. MT.
Notably in the win Thursday, senior Trevor Baptiste, the Denville, N.J. native, broke the NCAA Division 1 men’s lacrosse all-time career faceoff record, with his 1,118th.
Your new @NCAALAX Division I career faceoff wins record holder. #BeastBaptiste #DU1NATION #DENvMARQ pic.twitter.com/scOEf44fvv
— Denver Men’s Lacrosse (@DU_MLAX) May 3, 2018
With the victory Thursday, Denver improved to an all-time record of 6-2 in Big East tournament play.
The Pioneers are currently ranked third nationally, behind Yale and Maryland, and with a win tomorrow, DU would clinch a spot in this year’s 2018 Division 1 Men’s Lacrosse Championships.
Georgetown, ranked 18th nationally, defeated 14th ranked Villanova 13-10 on Thursday to keep their tournament hopes alive.
Since head coach Bill Tierney took over in 2009, the Pioneers have made eight straight NCAA tournament appearances and a win tomorrow would be their ninth.
Even with a loss tomorrow, Denver has done enough during the regular season to justify themselves as an at-large bid. The mighty Pioneers finished the regular season 12-2, with their only losses coming from fifth ranked Duke, and eight ranked Notre Dame.
Since the 2015 championship season, Denver has been considered by some as the lacrosse capital of the west. Another NCAA tournament birth would certainly justify that, as the Pioneers are the only currently ranked Division 1 men’s team west of the Mississippi River.
The postseason has only just begun for the Pioneers, and it’s time for the city of Denver to jump on board.