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Lacrosse Falls In Close Battle To No. 12 Denver, 14-13

by Utah Athletics
Feb 5, 2022

SALT LAKE CITY – In what was a battle to the final second of the game, the University of Utah Lacrosse team fell 14-13 to the No. 12 Denver Pioneers in Rice-Eccles Stadium today in its season-opener.

The Utes went toe-to-toe with the Pioneers from the very start, quickly taking a 2-1 lead on a two-goal swing by Jordan Hyde to start the game. After Denver answered with a two-goal momentum push of its own to end the first quarter, Utah would counter with a deep shot down the middle from Josh Stout to tie things up 3-3 with 14:20 to go in the second.

Denver held a 6-4 lead with 7:39 left in the second quarter, but a goal from Josh Rose and a back-side shot from Tyler Bradbury that found the net would tie the game once again at 6-6 with 3:47 on the clock. After a scoreless final two minutes of the second quarter, the Utes would head into halftime down 8-6.

The Utes would start the third quarter by scoring three unanswered points, starting with a goal from MJ McMahon as he dove to find the open goal, making it a one-point game with 10:57 on the clock. His goal would be followed by a score from Carson Moyer to tie things up 8-8 before defenseman Samuel Cambere would score on a counter play on a sneaky pass from Rylan Lemons to give the Utes a 10-8 lead with 4:42 to go.

Unfortunately for the Utes, Denver would counter with a run of its own, taking an 11-10 lead into the fourth quarter despite several incredible saves by Utah goalkeeper Zion Dechesere.

The Pioneers would jump out to a two-point advantage early in the fourth quarter, but the Utes continued to battle with Hyde finding the back of the net with 11:21 on the clock to make it 12-11. Denver took a 13-11 lead with 9:41 left to play in the game, but Hyde continued his scoring streak by making it four goals for the sophomore and a one-point game with 8:45 on the clock.

Late in the game, Dechesere would make a tremendous save on the other end of the field with Utah clearing the ball successfully to set up its next offensive possession. Bradbury would score after his own groundball to make it 14-13 heading into the final minute of the game.

Cole Brams would win the pivotal faceoff with 1:24 to play with the Utes able to get two final shots off with under 10 seconds to go in the game, but unfortunately for the Utes, neither would find the goal with the Utes falling 14-13.

GAME LEADERS
The Utes were led today by Hyde, who scored a team-high four goals with one assist, giving him a team-best five points. Bradbury added two goals and two assists for four points, while Stout contributed one goal and two assists for three points.

Cambere was a strong presence for the Utes today on defense, turning in a team-high five ground balls and three caused turnovers while Lemons added three ground balls and two caused turnovers to the stat line.

Brams and Rose also contributed five ground balls each while Dechesere finished the game with 10 saves.

UP NEXT
The Utes will be back in action when they travel to Burlington, Vt. to take on the No. 17 Vermont Catamounts. Live statistics for the game will be available on UtahUtes.com.

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