Pioneers Picked to Finish atop GWLL

Pioneers Picked to Finish atop GWLL

Four selected preseason all-conference


DENVER - The University of Denver men's lacrosse team has been selected to finish atop the Great Western Lacrosse League as voted by the GWLL coaches and was released today by Inside Lacrosse.



Head coach Jamie Munro's squad was picked to finish first in the conference, followed by Notre Dame, Ohio State, Air Force and Butler. Bellarmine and Quinnipiac tied for sixth place. Preseason conference rankings were voted on by GWLL coaches.



Despite the loss of two key midfield components from 2006, dominant face-off man Geoff Snider and leading scorer Adam Goodwin, Denver enters '07 as the pick to repeat as champions. Last year the Pioneers finished 5-0 in the GWLL, but standing in the immediate way is Notre Dame, who earned the last at-large bid to the NCAAs on the heels of a 3-2 conference mark in '06. The Irish were hit hard by graduation on both sides of the ball and will look to replace leaders such as defenseman D.J. Driscoll and attackman Pat Walsh. Ohio State, coming off an up-and-down '06 campaign, will need big performances out of standout attackman Kevin Buchanan, LSM Ricky Pages and a handful of transfers to stay competitive. Air Force, an up-and-comer in the GWLL, will look to build upon a '06 season that included a marquee conference win over Notre Dame.



The Pioneers finished 2006 with an overall record of 12-5, the best season in school history, and went to their first NCAA tournament. Denver returns 27 players from a year ago and has added 11 freshmen to the fold.



Four Pioneers have been selected to the all-GWLL preseason team. Seniors Ryan Zordani (Littleton, Colo.) and David Hahn (Aurora, Colo.) were selected at midfield/attack and defense, respectively. Zordani led DU with 39 points in 2006, including a team-high 20 assists. Hahn scored four points in 2006 and had 24 groundballs. Juniors Michael Goltra (Washington, N.C.) and Rory Shepard (Riverside, Conn.) round out DU's preseason selections. Goltra scored 33 points a year ago, including 25 goals, second only to Goodwin. Shepard started all 17 of the last year's contests and was second on the team with 58 groundballs.



Inside Lacrosse will release its preseason All-America list on Monday, Dec. 4. Denver begins its lacrosse season Feb. 17, 2007 against Penn State in State College, Pa., and is ranked 14th entering the season.