(Photo Courtesy of Denver Athletics)

The Denver Pioneers are the 38th DI program to release its 2023 men’s lacrosse schedule. The Pioneers are coming off a 2022 campaign in which they went 9-6 overall and 4-1 in Big East play. Denver saw its season end in the Big Easr semifinals with a loss to Villanova.

Denver’s 2023 slate features 14 games with five coming at home and nine on the road. Denver opens its season on February 4th against fellow western foe Utah at home. Denver opens Big East play on April 1st at Georgetown.

Denver’s 2023 Schedule

Date	Home	Away	Notes
2/4	Denver	Utah
2/11	Air Force	Denver
2/17	Duke	Denver
2/25	Denver	Merrimack
3/4	North Carolina	Denver
3/11	Yale	Denver
3/19	Denver	Ohio State
4/1	Georgetown	Denver	Big East
4/8	Denver	Villanova	Big East
4/13	Towson	Denver
4/15	St. John’s	Denver	Big East
4/21	Denver	Providence	Big East
4/28	Marquette	Denver	Big East

New Opponents

Merrimack

Teams Dropped

Canisius, Jacksonville

Key Games

2/4 vs Utah: For the third consecutive season, the Denver Pioneers will open the season up against the Utah Utes. Facing each other three times since the Utes’ inception as a DI program, Denver has won all three meetings. That includes a 14-13 victory on the road last season. Expect this to be another close battle between one of the ASUN and Big East’s best programs,

3/19 vs Ohio State: One of Denver’s biggest wins last season came on the road against the Ohio State Buckeyes, 14-12, in what was the first meeting between these two programs since 2018. This season, with how much Denver will be looking to get back on track and how good many believe Ohio State could be, this could be an important game for both as far as NCAA Tournament implications are concerned.

4/1 @ Georgetown: It is the Georgetown Hoyas who have been the class of the Big East in recent years, winning four consecutive conference titles. Three of those titles were won against Denver. As has been the case over the past few seasons, the Denver-Georgetown game will likely decide who gets the No. 1 seed in the Big East Tournament and could even be a conference championship game preview. Expect this to be the biggest regular season game in the league once again.

4/8 vs Villanova: The closest team the top two of Denver and Georgetown has been the Villanova Wildcats. And last season it was Villanova who ended the Pioneers’ season with a 15-14 win in the Big East semifinals. Denver won the regular season meeting 12-10. Circle this game as one of the most important and most exciting in the Big East, once again.