This page contains a Flash digital edition of a book.
Tournament Trend 4 Ryan LaPlante W


ith depth come options. Denver has both. “We finally have hit a point where the depth is going to


show,” coach Bill Tierney said. If a team that has made two of the last


three NCAA final fours in Tierney’s short tenure has yet to display its full capabilities, that’s a scary thought for opponents. Tierney, who built a Hall of Fame


Enemy Lines WHAT RIVAL COACHES SAY


career with six NCAA titles at Princeton, anticipates using as many as 30 players in a given game when needed, as opposed to the 20 or so that have seen the field in recent years. “I couldn’t even


“Berg and Noble are elite players who change games… They will drop some games early but win the Big East and do damage at the end… What happened to Berg in the semifinals? ... It’s more fun to watch Tierney teams these days. Gunslingers abound for the man most referees would rather see on the side of the road hitchhiking than on the sidelines. And no, they would not stop to pick him up.”


tell you who our bottom five guys are,” he said. D e n v e r ’ s returning


top


scorer, Wesley Berg, is a righty attackman


but


also could play the midfield. Tierney is confident in freshman


Tyler


Pace filling Berg’s role on attack if needed. Hartford transfer Jack Bobzien worked


in the fall as the team’s point-behind attackman, but ambidextrous midfielder Eric Adamson also is comfortable there. Getting midfielder Jeremy Noble back


and healthy will be key. He played in just 10 games, hobbled by lower-body injuries.


A Publication of US Lacrosse


Top Returner A WESLEY BERG (JR.)


Berg had 12 goals in the first two rounds of the NCAA tournament before being shut out in the semifinal against Syracuse.


Throw in heralded freshman Zack Miller,


who will start on attack and take some faceoffs, and offensive coordinator Matt Brown has plenty with which to game plan. Denver even has numbers where


most teams don’t, like in goal, where the Pioneers platooned Ryan LaPlante and Jamie Faus in a first-half, second-half split all the way to the NCAA semifinals. There, LaPlante made 13 first-half saves against Syracuse. Denver led 5-2 when Faus entered for the second half, but he made just four saves in an eventual 9-8 loss. “I’ll take the blame for the decision of not keeping Ryan in the second half of the Syracuse semifinal,” Tierney said. But the decision was not simple. Earlier


in the season against Loyola, LaPlante had a hot first half with eight saves and Denver led 8-3. At halftime, Faus told the coaches LaPlante should remain in the game. They listened, and LaPlante allowed nine second-half goals in an overtime win. Tierney questioned if fatigue was a factor. LaPlante was limited in the fall due to an


injury. “We have two great ones,” Tierney said. “If it was any other position, they’d both be starters. Why don’t we play them both?”


— C.M. Denver PIONEERS


2013 RECORD: 14-5 (6-1 ECAC) COACH: BILL TIERNEY (5TH YEAR) • RECORD AT DENVER: 50-20


09 10 11 12 13


Schedule Feb 8


Key Game At the moment, this is


the toughest game on the Pioneers schedule. A 14-12 comeback win in Durham last February kick-started Denver’s successful season.


Feb 15 Feb 22 Feb 23 Mar 1 Mar 8


Mar 10 Mar 15 Mar 22 Mar 29 Apr 5


Apr 12 Apr 19 Apr 26


at Air Force at Duke Marist


Canisius at Penn


Notre Dame* Penn State Ohio State Rutgers


at Georgetown at Villanova St. John’s


at Providence Marquette


* at Orange Coast College, Newport Beach, Calif.


Projected Starters A Wesley Berg (Jr.)* G: 56


A: 16


A Jack Bobzien (So.) G: 15


A Zach Miller (Fr.) G: N/A


M Jeremy Noble (Sr.)* G: 11


M Eric Adamson (Jr.)* G: 27


M Sean Cannizzaro (Jr.) G: 5


A: 13 A: 3


FO Chris Hampton (So.) FO%: 36.4


LSM Mike Riis (Jr.) GB: 9


D Carson Cannon (Jr.)* GB: 17


Pts: 0 CT: 5 CT: 3


D Christian Burgdorf (Fr.) GB: N/A


D Teddy MacKenzie (R-Jr.) GB: 9


CT: N/A CT: 3


G Jamie Faus (Sr.) GAA: 9.37


* returning starters X-Factor A ZACH MILLER (FR.)


Miller, the latest product from the Hill Academy (Ontario), is too good to keep off the field as freshman. The lefty will bring a new dimension to Denver’s already creative offense.


Power Ratings (SCALE OF 1-5)


5 4 4 2 OFFENSE DEFENSE GOALIE FACEOFF February 2014 >> LACROSSE MAGAZINE 35 SV%: 55.4


A: 33 (at Hartford) A: N/A (at Hill Acad.) A: 7


1ST


RD


FINAL FOUR QUARTERS FINAL FOUR


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52  |  Page 53  |  Page 54  |  Page 55  |  Page 56  |  Page 57  |  Page 58  |  Page 59  |  Page 60  |  Page 61  |  Page 62  |  Page 63  |  Page 64  |  Page 65  |  Page 66  |  Page 67  |  Page 68  |  Page 69  |  Page 70  |  Page 71  |  Page 72  |  Page 73  |  Page 74  |  Page 75  |  Page 76  |  Page 77  |  Page 78  |  Page 79  |  Page 80  |  Page 81  |  Page 82  |  Page 83  |  Page 84  |  Page 85  |  Page 86  |  Page 87  |  Page 88  |  Page 89  |  Page 90  |  Page 91  |  Page 92  |  Page 93  |  Page 94  |  Page 95  |  Page 96  |  Page 97  |  Page 98  |  Page 99  |  Page 100