#15 Falcon Lacrosse Hosts #9 Denver Saturday Afternoon

GAME 02: No. 15 AIR FORCE (1-0) vs. No. 9 DENVER (0-0)
WHEN: 1 p.m. MT, Saturday (Feb. 8)
WHERE: Cadet Lacrosse Stadium - USAF Academy, Colo.

THIS WEEK
The 15th-Ranked Air Force Falcons take on NCAA heavyweight and longtime rivals, No. 9 University of Denver, 1 p.m. MT, Saturday, Feb. 8, at Cadet Lacrosse Stadium at the United States Air Force Academy. The game will be radio broadcast live on ESPN Denver 1600 and live stats will be available at GoAirForceFalcons.com.

The Falcons, who typically host opponents at the U.S. Air Force Academy's esteemed Falcon Stadium, will instead host the Pioneers at Cadet Lacrosse Stadium, leaving Falcon Stadium clear for the 2020 NHL Stadium Series, which is set to take place February 15, between the Colorado Avalanche and Los Angeles Kings.

Due to the change of venue,live streaming capabilities are not available for the contest.

A QUICK LOOK AT DENVER
Denver's 2019 season came to an end with a 12-9 loss in the BIG EAST Men's Lacrosse Championship to Georgetown last May at Peter Barton Lacrosse Stadium.

The game against Air Force kicks off a stretch of five-straight games in the state of Colorado to open the first season of the decade.

Denver will begin a four-game homestand next Saturday when the Pioneers welcome Duke to Peter Barton Lacrosse Stadium. The Pioneers' 2020 home opener will faceoff at 12 p.m. MT, and will be broadcast live on Altitude TV and ESPN Denver 1600.

THE SERIES
The Falcons and Pioneers will be meeting for the 29th time since Air Force joined Division I lacrosse in 1994. Denver leads the 28-game series, 21-6. The Pios have won the last 11 meetings dating back to 2009, and head coach Bill Tierney has never lost to Air Force while at the helm of Denver's lacrosse program. Air Force's last win against Denver was in 2009 when the Falcons bested the Pioneers, 10-7.

UP NEXT
Air Force travels to Salt Lake City, Utah, to take on the Utah Utes at noon MT, Saturday (Feb. 15), at Rice-Eccles Stadium. The Falcons are looking to avenge last year's home loss to the Utes in the inaugural year as a Division I lacrosse program.

STARTING WITH A BANG
It took five hours for DI men's lacrosse to produce its first surprising upset as Air Force beat No. 7 Duke 14-13 in Durham, N.C.

Freshman attackman Brandon Dodd was a revelation for the Falcons, finishing with four goals and four assists, including the eventual game-winner with 48 seconds remaining, an empty-netter that put Air Force up 14-12 as Duke tried to double-team the ball-carrier and get another possession after the game clock fell below the shot clock.

Junior goalie Braden Host proved up to the task late and throughout the game as he finished with 17 saves, including a save of Nakeie Montgomery :37 remaining that, though Duke scored to cut Air Force's lead to one goal with :07 remaining, effectively sealed the win.

Junior Quincy Peene was excellent for Air Force, as well, posting four goals and an assist, while coach Bill Wilson's team got points from seven other players.

Air Force is no stranger to wins over Duke, having beaten the Blue Devils three times since 2016.

What was head-scratching about the result, however, is that the Blue Devils played really will in some areas. Sophomore FOGO Jordan Ginder won 15-of-19 draws, and fellow draw-taker Joe Stein won 6-of-11 and scored a goal. Joey Manown led Duke scorers with three goals and two assists. CJ Carpenter, starting in place of injured Joe Robertson, had two-and-two, while junior middie Cam Badour had three goals and an assist and sophomore middie Owen Caputo had a goal and three assists.

Efficiency-wise, Air Force scored on 14 of 30 possessions (46.7%), while Duke capitalized on 13 of 43 (30.2%).

Duke jumped out to a 5-0 first quarter lead, and Air Force spent the next 20 minutes chipping away before a three-goal Falcon run to open the third quarter narried the Blue Devil lead to 9-8. From there, it was nip-and-tuck until Air Force tied it at 12-12 with 7:23 to play.

Courtesy of Terry Foy, Inside Lacrosse

AIR FORCE SWEEPS WEEKLY SOCON AWARDS
Air Force's Brandon Dodd and Braden Host have been named the Southern Conference men's lacrosse offensive and defensive players of the week, respectively, after helping the Falcons top No. 5 Duke to open the season on Saturday. The awards are selected by the league office.

Dodd had quite the career debut, as the freshman from Logan, Utah, scored four goals and added four assists for an eight-point day in Air Force's 14-13 win at the fifth-ranked Blue Devils. Three of Dodd's assists came in the first quarter as the Falcons began to dig out of a 5-0 hole, and all four of his goals came in the second half, including the eventual game-winner with 48 seconds left. Dodd's eight points tie for seventh in a game in SoCon history and are the most ever registered against Duke by an Air Force player.

Host faced 47 shots in his season debut, with the junior from Aurora, Colorado, stopping 17 of them to lead the Falcons on defense. His 17 saves tied for second-most in his career, trailing only the 19 he had against then-No. 2 Yale last season and equaling the 17 he had against then-No. 8 Denver in his 2019 season opener. Host, who also picked up a pair of ground balls against Duke, posted a .567 save percentage on the day.

DODD EARNS NATIONAL RECOGNITION
Along with earning the SoCon's Offensive Player of the Week nod, Dodd garnered some noticeable attention from across the Div. I lacrosse world. US Lacrosse Magazine dubbed him National Player of the Week and USILA placed him, along with Host, on the USILA Team of the Week. On the home front, Dodd was dubbed the Air Force Academy's Cadet Athlete of the Week.

IN THE NATIONAL RANKINGS
Following the upset win over No. 5/7 Duke, the Falcons jumped up to No. 15 in the USILA Coaches Poll, and No. 12 in US Lacrosse Magazine's Poll.

#15 Falcon Lacrosse Hosts #9 Denver Saturday Afternoon

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Players Mentioned

Brandon Dodd

Braden Host

Quincy Peene

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