Matt Brown and the Colorado Mammoth were united Monday night in the National Lacrosse League dispersal draft. Brown, a former University of Denver standout, was selected by the Mammoth with the 14th overall pick in the second round of the draft, which was held to scatter players from the Arizona and Boston franchises.
Those teams had to cancel their seasons after the NLL canceled its season on Oct. 16, then the season was resurrected nine days later when the owners and players agreed on a collective bargaining agreement.
Brown was hired as a DU assistant coach last summer. Now, he can coach and play pro lacrosse in the same town year-round – in the summer he is a key player for the Denver Outlaws of Major League Lacrosse, the outdoor pro league.
In the first round of Monday’s draft with the 11th pick overall, Colorado selected defenseman Bruce Murray from Arizona. Forward Jed Prossner was selected in the third round.
Theresa Smith
Metro State women bid for repeat. The defending national champion Metro State women’s soccer team will make its sixth consecutive NCAA Division II Tournament appearance Friday when the Roadrunners (15-4-1) host the first round of the Midwest Region in a game against West Texas A&M (13-6-1).
Metro State, which defeated Grand Valley State in overtime to win the 2006 national title, lost to Fort Lewis in the RMAC semifinals Friday but earned an at-large bid into the tournament. Fort Lewis (14-4-3), which beat CSU-Pueblo to win the RMAC title on Sunday to earn the league’s automatic bid, will face Central Oklahoma (17-4-1) on Friday in the region’s other game. CSU-Pueblo was not granted a tournament bid.
The Metro State-West Texas A&M winner will face Incarnate Word (17-2-1) at Auraria Field on Sunday. The Fort Lewis-Central Oklahoma winner will play St. Edward’s (17-2-0).
Baird leads CU’s effort in golf tournament. University of Colorado men’s golfer Michael Baird shot a second-round, 2-under-par 70 to put him into a tie for third place in the three-round Michigan Wolverine Invitational at the 6,923-yard El Campeon Course at Mission Inn Resort in Howey-in-the-Hills, Fla.
Behind Baird, the Buffaloes jumped into a tie for second place in the team standings, joining Penn State with a 588 total. Baird, who opened the tournament with a 73 for a two-round total of 1-under 143, trails Michigan’s Tim Schaetzel and Iowa’s Cole Peevler, tied for first place at 142. Penn State’s Robert Rohanna also is at 143. Michigan leads the 10-team standings at 583.
Fort Lewis earns NCAA berth. The Fort Lewis men’s soccer team, coached by Tim Hankinson, on Monday earned its fourth consecutive berth in the NCAA Division II Tournament and will play in the Midwest Region in Canyon, Texas.
The Skyhawks (15-5-1), who finished as runners-up in the 2006 D-II tournament, will face host West Texas A&M (16-2-0) in Thursday’s first round. Fort Lewis defeated Colorado Mines on Monday to win the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference title.
Metro State (16-2-3), which lost to Colorado Mines in the RMAC semifinals, also received one of the 32 tournament bids and will host Midwestern State (16-3-0) of Wichita Falls, Texas, on Thursday at Aura- ria Field in Denver. The first-round winners will play in the regional final Saturday. The selection committee did not award Colorado Mines a tournament bid.
