CINCINNATI, Ohio - The [10/13] University of Denver women's lacrosse team is in pursuit of its fourth-consecutive Big East Tournament title on Saturday morning when the top-seeded Pioneers take on the second-seeded UConn Huskies in the BIG EAST Championship game at 10a.m. MT on Fox Sports 2.

SERIES HISTORY:
Denver is 11-0 against UConn, including an 18-9 victory over the Huskies earlier this season. The two teams will face off in the championship for the third consecutive year. Denver defeated UConn 11-6 to capture the BIG EAST Title in 2023. 

THE LAST TIME OUT:
The Pioneers defeated Villanova in a dominant fashion 19-7, in the BIG EAST semifinal on Thursday afternoon to advance to the championship. Olivia Penoyer had a record breaking day with 10 points on 2 goals and 8 assists, the most helpers ever recorded in a Big East tournament game. Both Julia Gilbert and Sloane Kipp recorded five goals. Denver dominated the draw, winning the battle in the circle 22-7.

WORK IN THE DRAW CIRCLE

• Denver has a 236-160 advantage in the draw circle this season.
• Senior draw specialist Abby Jenkins leads the Pioneers with 79 this season.
• Jenkins hauled in 10 in the Pioneers win over Butler on April 10, her first double-digit output this season and the eighth of her career. 

PENOYER THE DISTRIBUTOR 

• Yale graduate student transfer Olivia Penoyer leads the team and is ranked 11th in the country in assists with 48.
• Her 48 assists ranks fourth in the Pioneer record books for most assists in a single season.
• The fifth-year set a new career-high after dishing out eight assists in the Big East Tournament semifinal against Villanova. Eight assists is the second most assists by a Pioneer in a single game, and the most ever dished out in a Big East tournament game. 
• Penoyer has 3+ assists in 10 games this season. 
• Penoyer had back-to-back five assist games in BIG EAST wins over Marquette (April 6) and at Bulter (April 10), one shy of her career-high six which she produced three times in her time with the Bulldogs. 
• In her career at Yale, Penoyer broke Yale's career assists record, finishing her time in New Haven with 106 in her career. 
• Among active players in NCAA Division I women's lacrosse, Penoyer ranks third in career assists with 154.

BIG IN THE BIG EAST

• DU went 5-0 in Big East play this year, completing its fifth-straight season with an undefeated conference record (no confeence games in 2020 due to COVID-19).
• The Pioneers have won 32 consecutive Big East regular season games dating back to April 28, 2018. 
• Denver's last loss to a conference opponent in the main campaign was an 18-13 defeat vs Florida on April 21, 2018.

PIOS IN THE CONFERENCE TOURNAMENT

• The Pioneers are in the Big East Championship Game for the seventh straight season, as they've reached the title contest every year since joining the league in 2017.
• DU owns an 10-3 record in the Big East Tournament and sports a 20-17 mark all-time in conference tournament games in the Big East, Mountain Pacific Sports Federation and Mountain Pacific Lacrosse League.

BIG EAST HONOREES

• Nine Pioneers picked up Big East season accolades, the most among any team in the conference. 
• Graduate Student Trinity McPherson was named the Big East Defensive Player of the Year, and graduate student Julia Gilbert repeated as Attacker of the Year.
• This is the fifth straight season that DU won both the Defensive Player and Attacker of the year. Kate Fischer (2019),  Molly Little (2021) and Sam Thacker (2022/23) were also recognized with the top defender award, while Bea Behrins earned attacker accolades in 2021 and 2022 and Quinten Hoch-Bullen in 2019.
• Both McPherson and Gilbert were named to the All-Big East First Team alongside teammates Lauren Black (A), Caroline Colimore (M), Abby Jenkins (DS), Anna Palmisano (D) and Olivia Penoyer (A). DU was represented on the second team by Bryn McCaughey (D) and Emelia Bohi (GK).

2024 CAPTAINS

• The Pioneers selected graduate students Sam Thacker and Julia Gilbert, seniors Anna Palmisano and Sloane Kipp and redshirt junior Raegan Wilson as their 2024 captains.
• The 2023 National Defender of the Year Sam Thacker owns the program record for career caused turnovers at 184.
• Gilbert, led the Pioneers with 59 goals and 67 points last season. She was recognized as an IL and USA Lacrosse Magazine Second-Team All American, a member of the Tewaaraton Award Watch List, All-Big East First Team and IWLCA West/Midwest Region Second team honoree.
• Palmisano brings experience to the 'hot pink' defense and has started in every game the last three seasons. 
• Kipp was third on the DU squad last season with 57 shots on goal and a .429 shooting percentage with three game-winning goals during the 2023 Championship Weekend run.
• Before missing the second half of the season with an injury, Wilson earned 17 goals and four assists.

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