Vol. 7: Denver Is Undefeated and No. 4, but Its Biggest Test Won't Arrive Until May
The Pioneers' suffocating defense has reached a new level of excellence this year. For Denver, though, an NCAA Tournament run will mean more than a perfect regular season.
Denver sophomore goalie Emelia Bohi sees a shot against Louisville in the opener on Feb. 10. Bohi is 11th nationally in save percentage this year. Photo courtesy: Denver Athletics.
Denver got off to its best start in program history last season. The Pioneers were 6-0 when they ran into the buzzsaw that was Charlotte North and Boston College. BC took a 9-5 lead into the fourth quarter when the game was called because of a 2-degree wind chill.
The Eagles were one of two teams to beat Denver in 2022.
Not only did BC hand Denver its first loss last year, but it also ended the Pioneers’ season in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. Denver goalie Emelia Bohi didn’t make a single save in the Eagles’ 13-8 victory.
Bohi has come back stronger this season, and so have the Pioneers. The sophomore netminder is 11th in save percentage (.509), and Denver is still paving its new best start in program history. The No. 4 Pioneers, one of three remaining undefeated teams in the Inside Lacrosse Poll, are 10-0. They’ve beaten four top-25 opponents, none more significant than BC itself.
It was a full circle moment for Denver when it reversed the score line of its NCAA Tournament defeat with a 13-8 win over the Eagles, this time in sunny Jacksonville, Florida, for a neutral site regular season contest. Thanks to senior midfielder Ellie Curry, who scored or assisted on three of Denver’s first six goals, the Pioneers burst out of the gates with a 6-0 lead. The Eagles never recovered.
Three days later, Denver pushed its season win total to double digits with a 12-7 victory over No. 21 Jacksonville. Five different Pioneers scored at least two goals. For the most part, that’s the way head coach Liza Kelly’s team goes. Yes, senior attacker Lauren Gilbert has nine more goals (24) than any other player on the team, but no Pioneer has more than 25 points, and seven of them have at least 10 points.
As has often been the case with Kelly’s squads, Denver is strongest defensively. The Pioneers lead the country in scoring defense, and it isn’t particularly close, either. Denver is allowing just 6.00 goals per game, an average of 1.31 fewer goals than every other team in the country.
The Pioneers are also third in caused turnovers per game (12.3)—Sam Thacker and Bryn McCaughey are both top 20 in the country in that department, individually—and fourth in draw control percentage (62.3%).
Denver, which won its season opener, 5-4, against Louisville, has yet to give up more than eight goals in a game this year. While we haven’t seen a start quite like this for the Pioneers, we have seen their top-flight defenses before. The question is, how sustainable is a 4.60-goal average scoring margin when you get to May Madness?
Denver has never made it to the Final Four, and, of its six NCAA Tournament appearances, five have ended in the first or second round.
Regardless if the Pioneers finish the regular season undefeated or not, their 2023 story is going to be defined by what they do—or don’t do—in the tournament.
Other Storylines to Know:
1. Loyola stays in control of Patriot League, crushes BU. The Greyhounds continued their Patriot League mastery, easily dispatching a talented BU team, 15-1, Saturday at Nickerson Field in Boston. Loyola opened the game on a 9-0 run, fueled by a pair of goals from Sydni Black, Georgia Latch, Jillian Wilson and Chase Boyle. In the first half, the Greyhounds dominated in shots on goal, 21-10, and won all 12 draw controls.
Sophomore goalie Lauren Spence turned in a great start, allowing just one goal while making eight saves. She is second in the nation in goal against average (7.64) and trails only Emelia Bohi of Denver (5.85). Loyola’s defense and midfield has been its driving force this season. Jen Adams’ squad is first in the nation in draw control percentage (70.6%) and is fourth in scoring defense (7.67 goals allowed per game).
2. Virginia gets first win over Notre Dame since 2018. No. 11 UVA snapped a five-game losing streak against Notre Dame with a 16-13 win Saturday, their first victory over the Irish since 2018. Tied, 3-3, at the end of the first quarter, UVA dominated in the second. The Cavaliers won all 10 draw controls in the frame, outshot ND, 11-2, and went on an 8-1 run to lead, 11-4, at halftime.
UVA sophomore midfielder Abby Manalang blasts ahead of Notre Dame’s Hannah Dorney. The Cavaliers outscored the Irish, 8-1, in the second quarter, en route to a three-goal win. Photo courtesy: Virginia Athletics.
UVA senior midfielder Jaime Biskup led all scorers with five goals and one assist, and sophomore attacker Rachel Clark had five goals of her own. Clark is tied for the team lead in points with 44, and she’s eighth in the nation in shots per game (8.09). As a team, UVA averages 34.73 shots per game, the sixth-highest mark in the country.
Notre Dame senior Jackie Wolak had another strong showing with six goals and two assists. UVA has a date with No. 1 Syracuse this coming Saturday, and Notre Dame faces No. 3 UNC.
3. Virginia Tech gives BC a road scare. No. 7 BC had bounced back from its previous two losses this season in a big way. After the Eagles’ 15-14 defeat at No. 2 Northwestern on Feb. 19, the Eagles responded with a resounding 17-8 win over Duke. Then, when BC suffered a humbling 16-5 setback to No. 3 North Carolina in a March 3 national title game rematch, the Eagles followed with a 17-5 triumph over Brown—that was the start of a three-game BC win streak, which ended with No. 4 Denver handing head coach Acacia Walker-Weinstein’s team a 13-8 loss.
Virginia Tech freshman Ella Rishko makes a move toward cage against No. 7 BC on Saturday. The Hokies fell by just two goals, 14-12. Photo courtesy: Virginia Tech Athletics.
This time, however, her Eagles didn’t blow out their next opponent. Instead, Virginia Tech—just 1-4 in ACC play this season—staked itself to a 9-7 lead in the third quarter. That called for a ferocious BC comeback. The Eagles finished the game on a 7-3 run, returning to the win column and recording their sixth straight victory in the series. Freshman midfielder Shea Baker registered seven points (six more than she had all year), and all three of her goals came during that final stretch. Jenn Medjid, meanwhile, became the third Eagles player to reach the 200-goal mark for her career earlier in the day.
4. Led by Jill Smith, Michigan continues to roll. Smith has the Big Ten on notice. After a relatively tame freshman year, during which she scored only 15 goals, the sophomore from Farmington Hills, Michigan, has tripled that total in Year Two. Her 45 goals are good for second in the country and most in single-season Michigan history. Smith set that record in a 14-4 win over No. 25 Rutgers on March 24. The 5-foot-8, second-year attacker notched the 10th of her 11 hat tricks this season, scoring four times while junior attacker Lily Montemarano helped the No. 15 Wolverines clean up on the draw, 15-7. In fact, Montemarano became the first Michigan player to win double-digit bouts in the circle since 2018.
Perhaps most impressive, though, the Wolverines limited Rutgers—now an underwhelming 4-5, including 0-3 in Big Ten competition—to just 10 shots. Graduate attacker Kaley Thompson and graduate defender Morgan Whitaker both caused a pair of turnovers. Then there’s goalie Maya Santa-Maria, who turned away five shots. Michigan led Rutgers the whole way and, two days later, continued its surge with a 22-2 win over Xavier, the Wolverines’ sixth win in their last seven games. A total of 14 different Wolverines players found the back of the net in the lopsided win. Michigan has only three regular season games left but is one victory away from its second straight double-digit win campaign.
5. Jostling among A-10’s best, Richmond beats St. Joseph’s. It’s getting crowded atop the Atlantic 10 standings. UMass, Davidson, Richmond and St. Joe’s are all 3-1 or better in league play. The first three of those schools also have at least nine overall wins. Richmond created some distance between itself and St. Joe’s—just 4-6 overall—in the A-10 table this past weekend. The Spiders defeated the reigning A-10 champs, 15-9, piling up their fourth consecutive win. That streak started with a 16-15 double-overtime victory over No. 11 UVA.
Against the Hawks, Richmond senior middie Lindsey Frank led the way with 6 points (5 goals, 1 assist). Her five goals came on just eight shots, not to mention that she also posted three draws, a caused turnover and a ground ball. Senior attacker Arden Tierney, the A-10 Offensive Player of the Week, was responsible for 10 wins in the circle. The Spiders are third nationally right now in draws per game (17.36). As for the back line, freshman defender Jordyn Harrison scooped up four ground balls for the second time in her last three games. Richmond, which hasn’t allowed more than nine goals in each of its past three outings, has a massive test against No. 5 James Madison coming up on April 5.
Senior attacker Arden Tierney, the A-10 Offensive Player of the Week, celebrates with her Richmond teammates during a March 25 win over St. Joe’s. Photo courtesy: Richmond Athletics.
6. James Madison holds off Temple, keeps on winning. Ten was the magic number for JMU Saturday. In a 10-8 victory over Temple, the Dukes extended their win streak to 10 games. The game wasn’t as close as the score might suggest. JMU led, 7-1, at halftime, courtesy of a first-half hat trick from senior attacker Tai Jankowski, and Isabella Peterson finished with six points (3 goals, 3 assists). Temple made a push with five goals in the fourth quarter, but the Dukes’ lead stayed safe.
Senior goalie Kat Buchanan made nine saves while allowing eight goals, and she was named IWLCA Co-Defensive Player of the Week. Buchanan has saved at least 50% of the shots she’s faced in eight of her 11 starts this season.
Weekly Focus:
GOLDEN HOUR FOR THE MARQUETTE GOLDEN EAGLES
Marquette head coach Meredith Black leads the Golden Eagles’ huddle. Black has been at the helm since Marquette’s first varsity season in 2013. Photo courtesy: Marquette Athletics.
There’s something cooking up in Milwaukee, and it’s not cheese curds. Marquette is 9-1 and one win away from tying its winningest season in program history. Head coach Meredith Black, senior attacker Mary Schumar and an elite draw control unit have the team rolling with confidence into Big East play.
Marquette’s first varsity season came in 2013. In its first three years, the Golden Eagles went a combined 12-39, and five of those wins were by just one goal. Black, an IWLCA first-team All-American attacker at Notre Dame and the only head coach in Marquette history, continued to recruit with a focus on the attacker position and the draw control circle.
Fast forward to 2023, and Marquette is tops in the nation in draw controls per game (19.20). Last year, the Golden Eagles finished seventh nationally with 17.33 per game.
On the offensive end, Schumar has blossomed into one of the best players in program history. Her 67 points in 2022 tied the school record for single-season points, and she’s on pace to break that mark this year. The Grand Rapids, Michigan, native has 53 points (10 goals, 43 assists), and she’s first in the nation in assists per game (4.00). She had eight helpers in Marquette’s only loss, which came at the hands of No. 2 Northwestern, 21-14.
Senior midfielder Lydia Foust and sophomore attacker Meg Bireley have each added 38 points on the year, too, and Marquette leads the conference in scoring offense (17.90), assists per game (8.70) and ground balls per game (19.00).
The Golden Eagles got their first ranked win in 2019, 14-12, over conference rival Georgetown. In 2022, they fought to a 3-2 Big East record and earned the No. 2 seed in the conference tournament for the first time ever.
The six-game sprint that is Big East conference play starts on Saturday. Marquette gets going with a road matchup against Georgetown, and its regular season finale is against Denver, the Big East favorite.
Numbers to Know:
32 – Credit to USA Lacrosse Magazine’s Kenny Dejohn for finding this one. Over the week of March 20-26, there were 32 games that ended in running time (10-plus goal margin of victory). Dejohn noted, “It’s not uncommon for the early stages of conference play to produce gaudy scores, but 32 is a lot of uncompetitive games.”
10.00 – What makes Syracuse the best team in the country? Well, maybe start with its nation-best 10 assists per game. The Orange also lead the country with a 52.5% shot percentage. Good passes = open shots? Makes sense.
6.00 – Surprise, surprise, another Izzy Scane stat. The Northwestern standout still leads the nation in goals per game at an even 6.00. On March 29, 2022, Charlotte North led the nation and averaged 4.90 per game.
Tewaaraton Watch:
POINTS LEADERS
GOALS LEADERS
NOTE: Stats correct through March 27.
Inside Lacrosse Poll
Screenshots pulled from insidelacrosse.com.
Call Week 7 Ernest Hemingway, because it’s “all quiet” in the Inside Lacrosse Top 25. The top 10 is completely unchanged, and No. 11 UVA swapped places with No. 12 Notre Dame after the teams’ close game on Saturday. Penn State moved up two spots following a 10-goal win over Ohio State. Rutgers slid to the brink of the poll after being beaten soundly by Michigan.
What’s Ahead?
No. 17 Princeton @ No. 10 Maryland, March 29, 7 p.m.
No. 18 Penn State @ No. 2 Northwestern, March 30, 8 p.m.
No. 23 Penn @ No. 8 Florida, April 1, 12 p.m.
No. 3 North Carolina @ No. 12 Notre Dame, April 1, 12 p.m.
Villanova @ No. 4 Denver, April 1, 3 p.m.
No. 19 USC @ Stanford, April 2, 4 p.m.
No. 14 Yale @ No. 13 Army, April 4, 7 p.m.
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