DENVER – The [11/14] University of Denver men's lacrosse team fell to [4/4] North Carolina 15-13 on Sunday afternoon in-front of a sold out crowd of 2,547 at Peter Barton Lacrosse Stadium.
 
Denver scored eight of the final 10 goals to chip-away at what started out as a 9-1 deficit, but it wasn't enough as North Carolina improved to 5-0 on the year, while the Pioneers fell to 3-2 in 2020.
 
Senior attack Ethan Walker (Peterborough, Ontario) led the way for the Pioneers offense with five goals for his first hat trick of the season and the 26^th of his career, while junior Jack Hannah (Milford, Ohio) chipped in four goals and a helper, posting all five of his points in the fourth quarter. Hannah's hat trick was his third of the season. Sophomore Drew Erickson (Danville, Calif.) added two man-up goals and an assist. In his first career start, freshman Jack Thompson (Castle Rock, Colo.) made 10 saves.
 
It was all North Carolina in the first 25 minutes, as the visitors raced out to a 9-1 lead halfway through the second quarter. Walker scored the only goal for the Pioneers in the stretch, netting his seventh goal of the season with 12:38 to go in the second. Walker got Denver's second goal of the day and his eighth of the campaign with 5:01 to go in the second and Erickson went behind the back cutting down the slot on the man-up with 1:48 to go in the half to make it 9-3 Tar Heels.
 
Nicky Solomon got the scoring started for the Tar Heels in the third quarter to make it 10-3, and was quickly answered by goals from junior Ted Sullivan (Tucson, Ariz.) and Erickson. North Carolina ended the quarter on a 3-0 run to take a 13-5 lead into the final 15 minutes.
 
Denver opened the fourth quarter on a 4-0 run with goals from sophomore midfielder Alex Simmons (Smithville, Ontario), Walker, Hannah and Walker to make it 13-9 with 8:39 to play. The Heels responded with two quick tallies of their own to push it back to a six-goal game before Hannah scored three-straight goals with 5:47, 3:32 and 2:47 remaining to trim the deficit to three at 15-12. Walker added his fifth of the day with 28 seconds left to make it 15-13.
 
The Pioneers hit five pipes on Sunday to Carolina's one.
 
UP NEXT:
The Denver men's lacrosse program, Presented by Your Hometown Toyota Stores, will leave the state of Colorado for the first time in 2020 next weekend when the Pioneers make the trip to South Bend to take on western rival Notre Dame Saturday at 12 p.m. ET/10 a.m. MT. The game will be broadcast live on the ACC Network and on 104.3 The Fan.
 
2020 DENVER ATHLETIC HALL OF FAME RECEPTION: Denver announced its 2020 Athletic Hall of Fame class in January. The inductees will be honored on the DU campus May 16. For more information, registration for the reception and donation information, click here. 
 
SHOP PIONEERS:
Get dressed for Game Day! Get your Pioneers gear at ShopPioneers.com, the official online store of University of Denver Athletics.
 
TICKETS:
For all Denver Athletics ticket inquires, call 303-871-GOAL (4625), or visit DenverPioneers.com. Season tickets for the 2020 lacrosse season are on sale now, and can be purchased here.

Fans interested in making a donation to the men's lacrosse program can do so by clicking here. Your contribution will make a direct impact on the success of YOUR Pioneers. Thank you in advance for your unwavering support of our student-athletes and their quest for excellence.
 
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