DENVER – The University of Denver men's lacrosse program has announced its 2023 schedule, highlighted by trips to Duke, North Carolina, Yale and Georgetown and home games against Utah to open the season, Ohio State in mid-March and Villanova to open the BIG EAST home calendar, head coach Bill Tierney announced on Friday.
 
Denver and Utah will open the season together for the third-straight year on February 4 at Peter Barton Lacrosse Stadium. The Pioneers have won all three pervious meetings between the two western programs, including two one-goal games in the last two campaigns.
 
The Pioneers will make the short trip down I-25 in week two to take on Air Force on February 11. Denver is 24-2 in the all-time series, including 11-1 in Colorado Springs. DU has won the last 15 meetings between the only two Division I programs in Colorado.
 
DU will make its first of two trips to North Carolina on February 17 when the Pioneers play a Friday night game at Duke. The Blue Devils have a 10-6 lead in the all-time series and have won the last five meetings. Denver's last win in Durham was a 14-12 victory in 2013, led by five goals from former midfielder and former volunteer assistant Erik Adamson.
 
The Crimson and Gold will return home on February 25 to take on Merrimack, the first meeting between the two programs.
 
Denver will head to Chapel Hill on March 4 to start its second of three back-to-back road game stretches. UNC is 13-7 in the series and has won the last three, a stretch that came right after three-straight wins for the Pios in Chapel Hill from 2016-19.
 
The Pioneers will return a visit to Yale on March 11. The Bulldogs have won both of the previous meetings, including a 16-13 game at Peter Barton last March.
 
A long-standing rivalry that was interrupted by a snow storm and lost two meetings due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Ohio State will return to Peter Barton Lacrosse Stadium for the first time since 2018 on March 19. The Pioneers have a 13-12 lead in the all-time series, including 9-3 in the Mile High City. Denver knocked off then No. 7 Ohio State in Columbus a year ago and has won four of the last five matchups.
 
Denver will play a rare non-conference game in the middle of its BIG EAST calendar this year when the Pioneers make the trip to Towson on April 13 before heading to St. John's that weekend. The Pioneers have a 5-4 lead in the series and have won each of the last four meetings. Of the previous nine, seven have been within a three-goal margin, including each of the last five.
 
BIG EAST play will begin on April 1^st. Denver is on a two-home game campaign in conference play this year that will see the Pioneers host Villanova (April 8) and Providence (April 21). The Pios will travel to Georgetown (April 1), St. John's (April 15) and Marquette (April 28) in 2023. Denver's Senior Night Game against Providence will give Denver a Friday night game at home for the second-consecutive season.
 
Marquette will host the 2023 BIG EAST Men's Lacrosse Championship May 4-6.
 
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