Other Sports
See also: Denver Pioneers men's lacrosseSkiing is another strong sport. The University of Denver Ski Team has won 21 NCAA titles (more skiing titles than any other school), dominating the first decade of the 2000s. DU "three-peated" NCAA titles in 2008, 2009 and 2010, won an NCAA title in 2005 and as well as three consecutive NCAA titles from 2001 to 2003.
The women's gymnastics team finished 12th at the 2008 NCAA Championships and 10th in 2007.
The DU men's and women's tennis teams are consistently ranked in the top 35 to top 70 of all Division 1 collegiate tennis teams. The men's team has produced All-Americans, including a Men's Singles player ranked 11th in the country, and the team has been ranked as high as 25th in the country during the 2010 season.
The DU women's soccer team advanced to the Sweet 16 of the 2012 NCAA Women's College Cup Touranment, and have also appeared in the 2006, 2007, 2008 and 2009 NCAA Tournaments, the Men's Soccer team has appeared in the 2010 and 2008 NCAA tournaments, while the Men's Lacrosse team appeared in the 2006, 2008, 2010, 2011, and 2012 NCAA Tournaments, and made the Final Four of the 2011 tournament.
The women's basketball team appeared in the 2001 NCAA Tournament.
The women's golf team finished 5th in the 2009 NCAA tournament and have also been in the 2008 (6th) and 2007 (14th) NCAA finals.
The men's basketball team won the Sun Belt West Division in 2005 and appeared in the National Invitational Tournament (NIT) for the first time since the 1950s.
Denver's first athletic event was in a baseball game in 1867 (a loss to the Arapahone Baseball Club), a sport that was played at the varsity level until 1999 when DU returned to full NCAA D-I status. Football was once the most popular sport at Denver. The first DU football game was played in 1885 against Colorado College, which is believed to be the first intercollegiate football game played west of the Mississippi River. DU's Football highlights include appearances in the 1946 Sun Bowl, the 1947 Alamo Bowl and the 1951 Pineapple Bowl. The football team played in a 30,000 seat stadium that stood on campus from 1926 to 1971. However, the program was discontinued in 1961 for financial reasons.
Other notable Denver sports alumni include former Major League Baseball player Dan Schatzeder, NBA basketball players Vince Boryla and Byron Beck, CFL Hall of Famer and former NFL football player Sam Etcheverry, 1952 US Olympic Long Jump Gold Medalist Jerome Biffle, former US Olympic Committee Executive Director Lyman Bingham, and MLS/US National soccer player Nat Borchers. San Antonio Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich received a master's degree from DU but did not play any varsity sports there. Five-time world champion and US Olympic figure Skating star Michelle Kwan graduated from DU in 2009. Also, comedian and actor Sinbad played basketball at DU under his real name of David Adkins.
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Famous quotes containing the word sports:
“Falling in love is the right adventure for those who dislike sports and travel.”
—Mason Cooley (b. 1927)
“...I didn’t come to this with any particular cachet. I was just a person who grew up in the United States. And when I looked around at the people who were sportscasters, I thought they were just people who grew up in the United States, too. So I thought, Why can’t a woman do it? I just assumed everyone else would think it was a swell idea.”
—Gayle Gardner, U.S. sports reporter. As quoted in Sports Illustrated, p. 85 (June 17, 1991)