WLAX v Florida (21 APR 18) - Full Game
WLAX v Florida (21 APR 18) - Highlights

DENVER- After fighting back to take a 7-6 lead late in the first half, the Denver Pioneers couldn't keep the momentum in the second half and fell to the No. 6 Florida Gators by a score of 18-13 on Saturday afternoon in its last regular season home game.

The Pioneers dropped to 10-5 in the season and 5-3 in BIG EAST play with the loss, while the Gators improved to 13-3 and 8-0 in conference play.

Florida got out to an early lead just 50 seconds into the game, and proceeded to jump out to a 6-0 lead before Denver was able to get on the board 16:16 into the game (13:44). The first goal by Elizabeth Behrins turned out to be the catalyst, as the home team would rally to score the next six goals in the contest to take its first and only lead of the game at 7-6 with 2:14 remaining in the half.

A late goal by Florida with less than a second left made it seven all heading into halftime, and much like the first half, Florida opened up the second half with early goals to gain the lead. Back-to-back goals by the Pioneers cut the deficit back to one at 10-9, however, that is as close as DU would get for the remainder of the afternoon as Florida outscored Denver 11-6 in the half to take the victory.

Florida outshot Denver 32-28 (28-20 on shots on goal), while also having the edge in draw controls (21-11). Denver had the edge in caused turnovers (14-11), ground balls (12-11), had fewer turnovers (15) than Florida (22) and was more successful in clears (16-for-19), including going a perfect 9-for-9 in the first half.

A big key to the game was in free-position opportunities, in which Florida was able to convert its 14 chances into nine goals, compared to Denver, which was 4-for-10.

Junior Julia Feiss, and freshmen Quintin Hoch-Bullen and Eliza Radochonski each registered a hat trick to lead the Pioneers in scoring, while Feiss added a team-high three assists for a game-high six points. Maddie Baum led the Crimson and Gold with six draw controls on the afternoon, bringing her season total to 80, just one behind a tie for second all-time in draw controls in a single-season. Behrins, Caroline Lewis, Audrey Schreck and senior Riley Eggeman each picked up two ground balls, while Kennedy Milburn led in caused turnovers with three.

Carson Gregg recorded 10 saves in the game, the fifth time this season that the sophomore has reached double digits in saves.

Florida scored on its opening possession at 29:10 and added a second goal on a free-position attempt less than a minute later (28:15). With 26:14 to play, the Gators added their third goal on a free-position attempt to lead by three.

UF added its third and fourth free-position goals of the game (19:30 and 17:13) to go up 5-0, and scored its sixth goal with 16:09 remaining in the half.

Feiss helped spark Denver's comeback with a hand in DU's first three goals to cut the deficit in half, all within a span of 1:15. The junior attacker assisted on Behrins' goal (Denver's first goal), and added a free-position goal (12:55) and an unassisted goal 26 seconds later (12:29) to pull the Pioneers within three at 6-3.

After Gregg made a save on a point-blank shot on the defensive end, Hoch-Bullen converted on a pass from Feiss with 9:19 to play in the half to make it four-straight goals by the Pioneers.

Lanuza scored her first goal of the game 1:12 later on an unassisted goal to pull Denver within one, and Hoch-Bullen found the back of the net on a free-position attempt at the 4:48 mark to even the game at six. Lanuza and Radochonski used a give-and-go for Lanuza's second goal, giving the Pioneers the 7-6 advantage with 2:14 remaining in the half, capping a 7-0 run by the Pioneers.

Florida added a goal to tie the game with just .7 seconds left in the half, bringing the end to the half at seven all.

The Gators opened up the second half with the first three goals, two of which coming on free-position attempts within the first two minutes of the half, to regain the lead for good. In a case of déjà vu, Florida once again scored at the 29:10 mark of the half, only this time it was on a free-position goal, and added a second free-position goal a little more than a minute after that (28:08).

Hoch-Bullen ended the mini-run for the Gators on her third goal of the game, a free-position goal with 25:23 remaining in the half, followed up by Feiss' third goal of the game 51 seconds later, also a free-position goal (24:32) to cut the margin to one at 10-9. The freshman attacker went 2-for-2 on free-position attempts in the game.

Florida and Denver proceeded to exchange series of runs, with UF scoring the next three goals, to which Denver would answer with a 2-0 run. After Florida used a 3-0 run to go up 13-9, Radochonski scored back-to-back goals (18:16 and 16:01), with Behrins and Caitlin Derry picking up the assists, but once again the visitors scored the next three goals to push the lead to five at 16-11.

Radochonski netted her third goal of the game on a feed from Eggeman with 3:37 to play and Behrins put it past the Florida goalkeeper off a pass from Feiss with 2:48 to play to cut the lead to three at 16-13. However, that was all the Pioneers would score, as the Gators closed the game with the final two goals.

UP NEXT: Denver travels to Nashville, Tenn., next Saturday to face the Vanderbilt Commodores in its final regular season game. With Marquette losing to Georgetown on Saturday, both the Pioneers and the Golden Eagles remain tied for third at 5-3 in the BIG EAST, with Denver holding the head-to-head advantage due to its win on Wednesday.

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Student-Athlete Alumni Giving Challenge:
In 2017-18, the University of Denver is holding an alumni giving challenge in an effort to increase student-athlete alumni participation in the Denver Athletics Annual Fund. The sport program with the highest percentage of alumni participation will receive an additional $10,000 of support through the generosity of an anonymous donor. Former student-athletes can make a gift online, by calling 303-871-2388 during normal business hours or by sending a check to:

Athletics Development Office
Attn: Kaley Rickert
2201 E. Asbury Avenue
Denver, CO 80208

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