Big East Conference Tournament | Peter Barton Stadium (Denver, Colo.)
Big East Conference Semifinals | Thursday, May 5, 2022
#1 Denver (15-2, 5-0 BE) vs. #4 Connecticut (13-3, 3-2 BE) – 1 p.m. MT, Stream: Big East Digital Network
#2 Marquette (8-9, 3-2 BE) vs. #3 Georgetown (8-8, 3-2 BE) – 4 p.m. MT, Stream: Big East Digital Network
 
Big East Championship Game | Saturday, May 7, 2022
Semifinal winner 1 vs. Semifinal 2 winner – 12 p.m. MT, TV: FS2
 
Tickets: $9 All Sessions | $5 Individual Games
 
DENVER – The Denver Pioneers women's lacrosse team is hosting this week's Big East Conference Tournament at Peter Barton Stadium, beginning with the semifinals on Thursday and concluding with the championship game on Saturday.
 
The Pioneers, who rank No. 12 in the nation, will face the No. 18 Connecticut Huskies in the first semifinal on Thursday at 1 p.m. MT, while Marquette will play Georgetown later on that day at 4 p.m. MT. The winners will square off in the championship game on Saturday at 12 p.m. MT, with the contest being broadcasted nationally on Fox Sports 2.
 
All three games at Peter Barton Stadium are ticketed, with "all session" tickets (three games) available for $9 and individual games available for $5. Seating is general admission.
 
Denver is the defending conference tournament champions after winning last year's event and has won the Big East regular-season championship in each of the last three full seasons (2019, 2021, 2022).
 
The Pioneers are coming off a 19-10 victory over Marquette on senior day on Saturday, while the Huskies (13-3, 3-2 BE) dropped their final game of the regular season to Georgetown by a 22-12 score last Friday.
 
DU finished the main campaign with a 15-2 record and a perfect 5-0 mark in conference play. Denver went 4-1 against ranked opponents during the regular season, with its only such loss coming in a 9-5 defeat to then-No. 1 Boston College on March 9.
 
The Pioneers are hosting the Big East Tournament at Peter Barton Stadium for the first-time ever. It will be the program's fourth-ever conference tournament played at DU, with the squad also hosting Mountain Pacific Sports Federation's postseason in 2004, 2010 and 2014. Denver, which is 4-3 all-time in conference tournament games on home turf, won its only other conference tournament in that 2014 MPSF season.
 
Graduate student Bea Behrins is expected to appear in her 79th career game on Thursday, which will set a new program record.
 
LAST TIME OUT
Denver ended the regular season with the outright Big East regular season title after defeating Marquette 18-9 on Saturday afternoon at Peter Barton Stadium. Lauren Black's eighth hat trick and 14th multi-goal game of the campaign led the Pioneers, as she produced seven points on four goals and three assists. Julia Gilbert added six points with four goals and two helpers, while Bea Behrins chipped in five on a hat trick and two assists. Kayla DeRose and Ellie Curry rounded out Denver's multi-goal scorers with two markers apiece. Full Recap
 
HISTORY VS. UCONN
Denver is 7-0 all-time versus the Huskies, winning the previous three meetings at Peter Barton Stadium in 2008, 2017 and earlier this season. The Pioneers won 14-13 in overtime on April 9, as Julia Gilbert tallied the game-winner. DU defeated Connecticut in the 2021 Big East Championship Game, winning 13-7 in the squads' only other postseason meeting.
 
LAST MEETING VS. CONNECTICUT: APRIL 9, 2022
The then-No. 8 Pioneers and No. 20 Connecticut went to overtime for the second-consecutive year, and this time Julia Gilbert played the hero as she bounced a shot just under the crossbar on DU's first possession of extra time. The Pioneers stuck together to overcome a 20-11 deficit in the draw circle, a 32-26 deficit in fouls and a 5-1 deficit in the yellow card count to come out on top in this crucial affair in the Big East standings. Full Recap
 
QUICK HITS

• Senior Kailee Lammers earned her second consecutive Big East Defensive Player of the Week award on Monday, while attacker Lauren Black was named Freshman of the Week.
  • Lammers totaled eight ground balls, four caused turnovers and two draw controls in DU's two games last week, earning four ground balls, two caused turnovers and a draw control in each contest against Colorado and Marquette. She also scored her second goal of the season on Wednesday vs. CU and added an assist on Saturday vs. Marquette.
  • Lammers has now been named Defensive Player of the Week three times this year.
  • Black tallied three goals on four shots on Wednesday against the Buffaloes before tying her career high with seven points (4g/3a) on Saturday.
  • It is Black's fourth Freshman of the Week award of the season and marked the sixth time that she has been honored in the Big East's weekly accolades.
• Denver is first in the nation with 229 caused turnovers, which already rank as the fourth-most in a season in program history.
• The Pios have allowed just 8.18 goals per game, sixth-best in the country.
• DU has scored double-digit goals in 13-of-15 wins and at least 14 tallies in six of the past seven games.
• Defender Sam Thacker is one of 25 women nominees for the Tewaaraton Award, given to college lacrosse's top player.
  • Thacker among the nation's leaders in caused turnovers per game at 2.88 (49 total).
  • Her 49 caused turnovers rank as the second-most in a season in school history.
  • Her 96 career caused turnovers are tied for the fifth-most in the program annals.
• Bea Behrins ranks in the top 35 in the nation in goals per game at 3.3.
  • Behrins leads the team in all three scoring categories with career high with 56 goals, 20 assists and 76 points.
• In program history, Behrins ranks…
  • Fourth in career goals with 184, three behind third-place Steph Greenlees (2003-2006).
  • Fifth in career points with 238, 11 behind fourth-place Steph Greenlees (2003-2006).