After 10 years in the National Lacrosse League, Colorado Mammoth defenseman Dave Stilley announced his retirement Tuesday.
Stilley, 34, has been a fan favorite since joining the team in its inaugural season in Denver. He said the decision was one of the heaviest he’s had to make in his life. “My commitments to my amazing wife and daughter and my career in commercial real estate will leave me committed less than 100 percent to the team,” Stilley said, “which is not fair to all of you.”
After winning two championships with the Philadelphia Wings, Stilley was traded to Colorado midway through the 2003 season and played in 60 regular-season games and all eight Mammoth playoff games. The Mammoth won the NLL championship in 2006.
A native of Philadelphia, Stilley graduated from Duke University, where he was a first-team All-American in 1996 and 1997. He lives in Edgewater with his wife, Patrice, and daughter, Vivian.
Ritzenhein honored. Former University of Colorado running standout Dathan Ritzenhein is USA Track and Field’s humanitarian athlete of the year for donating the prize money he won to the National Kidney Foundation.
Ritzenhein will be honored Dec. 1 at the Jesse Owens Awards and Hall of Fame induction ceremony in Honolulu. Ritzenhein won the Healthy Kidney 10-kilometer race in New York in May, then donated his $7,500 winnings, saying his mom, Rae Marie Nessner, and a grandfather have fought kidney problems.
Mines women lose heartbreaker. Kayla Klug nailed a 3-pointer with 33 seconds remaining, and the Fort Hays State women’s basketball team (2-1) hung on for a 57-56 win over Colorado Mines in Hays, Kan.
The Orediggers (2-3) had rallied from eight points down to tie the game with 43 seconds left on a layup by Stevie Hagemeister, who had 17 points. Emily Dalton also had 17 for Mines.
Wyoming golf signs three. The Wyoming golf teams have received commitments from three players, including Clinton Boutelle of Cody High School, the reigning Wyoming 3A state champion. He was also recruited by Colorado and Arizona.
Signing with the women’s squad were Kelsey Podlesny of Green River H.S., the 4A Wyoming state champ as a junior and runner-up in 2005 and ’07, and Juanita Rico of Calgary. Rico was named the top junior player in Alberta this summer. Podlesny chose the Cowgirls over Colorado, Iowa State and Minnesota, and Rico was also recruited by Denver, Colorado and South Florida.
