Denver Univ. to Host 6th Annual Pioneer Face-Off Classic

[Sonny]

Denver to Host 6th Annual Pioneer Face-Off Classic

North Carolina, Manhattan and Air Force will make the trip to the Mile High City

DENVER - The University of Denver men's lacrosse team will host the sixth annual Pioneer Face-Off Classic at the newly finished Peter Barton Stadium Feb. 25-26. The round robin tournament will feature four games taking place over the course of two days. This year's participants include Air Force, Manhattan and North Carolina.

Saturday's match-ups include an 11 a.m. game between North Carolina and Air Force and a 1:30 game between Denver and Manhattan. Sunday's games pit Air Force and Manhattan against each other at 11 a.m. and a highly anticipated game between Denver and North Carolina at 1:30 p.m.

The Pioneer Face-Off Classic has grown into a marquee tournament for the early portion of the lacrosse season. The Face-Off Classic has featured such lacrosse powerhouses as Virginia, North Carolina and Syracuse to name a few and has always provided great match-ups. The Pioneers defeated then-No.1 Virginia 9-7 in the final game of the tournament in 2004 and last season lost a hard-fought game, 10-8 to Towson in the final game of the tournament.

DU is coming off a 9-5 (4-1 Great Western Lacrosse League) season a year ago and were regular season co-champions. They concluded the season with a No. 18 ranking in the Coaches Poll. The Pioneers return 24 letterman and seven starters while welcoming seven newcomers to the squad. The Pioneers have been ranked in each of the three major preseason polls with their highest ranking being No. 15 by Lacrosse Magazine. They have also been ranked No. 19 by Lax.com and No.22 by Inside Lacrosse. Head coach Jamie Munro enters his eighth season with the Denver lacrosse team as the team's all-time winningest coach with a 52-43 record over seven seasons. The team will be lead by senior tri-captains Billy McKinney (Philadelphia, Pa.), Andrew McCuiston (Birmingham, Mich.) and Bart Sullivan (Dublin, Ohio).

Air Force will once again be making the trip up from Colorado Springs to participate in the Face-Off Classic. The Falcons have appeared in the Pioneer Face-Off Classic each year of its existence. Air Force finished the 2005 season with a 4-8 record and tied for fifth in the Great Western Lacrosse League. The Falcons enter the weekend with a 0-1 record after falling to Villanova, 11-6 Feb. 18.

Manhattan will be making its second trip to the Mile High City and will open their 2006 season at the Pioneer Face-Off Classic. The Jaspers received votes in the Inside Lacrosse Preseason Poll and received a third-place nod in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Preseason Coaches Poll. Senior defender Pat Farrelly earned All-MAAC Preseason honors. In addition to Farrelly, juniors Chris Oppito, Justin Henry, and Brian Murray headline Manhattan's returnees. Oppito, who tallied 14 goals and 11 assists last season at midfield, and Henry, who posted a 9.68 goals against average in net, were both part of the 2005 All-MAAC Second Team. Murray, who was recently selected to play for Team Ireland at the 2006 World Games, finished with 12 goals and 12 assists last year.

North Carolina will be making its first appearance in the Face-Off Classic this season. The Tar Heels enter the weekend with a 1-0 record, recording a 14-5 victory of Ohio State on Feb.18. The Tar Heels were led by freshman Michael Burns and Bart Wagner who recorded three goals apiece. The Tar Heels are ranked No. 18 in the Lacrosse Magazine Preseason Poll, No. 20 in the Lax.com Preseason Poll and No. 14 in the Inside Lacrosse Preseason Poll. The Tar Heels finished the 2005 campaign with a 5-8 record and a fourth place regular-season Atlantic Coast Conference finish.

[byualum]

For those with access to Fox Sports - Rocky Mtn, they will be showing a tape-delay version of the UNC/DU game on Monday, 2/27 at 7pm (MT). On DISH Network it's channel 414.

[MF]

DU should match up well against NC. It's going to be a good game. This weekend should get them back on track after losing to Virginia.

[Weberlax12]

For those with access to Fox Sports - Rocky Mtn, they will be showing a tape-delay version of the UNC/DU game on Monday, 2/27 at 7pm (MT). On DISH Network it's channel 414.

on direct tv it is on channel 645