DENVER – This is not Stanford’s Mountain  Pacific Sports Federation women’s lacrosse opener – the Cardinal opened the season with a conference tilt – but is Stanford’s first conference game since mid-February. Not only that, but it’s against Denver, in a showdown between the MPSF’s perennial contenders. Denver (6-2, 1-0) and Stanford have played in the past two MPSF tournament finals.


The following is a closer look at Friday’s game:

Who: No. 13 Stanford (5-2, 1-0) at Denver (6-2, 1-0)
When: Friday, 2 p.m. PT (3 p.m. MT)
Where: Peter Barton Lacrosse Stadium (artificial turf)
All-Time Series Record: Stanford leads, 17-8
Live Stats: Click here
Forecast: Sunny, 45 degrees at opening draw.


The Stanford-Denver Series: Stanford leads the all-time series, 17-8, but Denver has claimed the past two meetings. The schools have met in the MPSF tournament the past three seasons, with Stanford winning the first two. Last year, Denver defeated Stanford last season 13-12 at Stanford during the regular season and again in the MPSF tournament final, 14-11.

This Season: Stanford opened the season 4-0 and reached No. 9 in the IWLCA rankings, but has since lost two of three, including a 15-7 loss at home to unranked Cornell on Tuesday. Stanford claimed 12-10 victories over two ranked teams, Notre Dame and Ohio State, but Penn State rallied to a 17-15 victory on March 24 to halt the undefeated season.