Fall Sports at DU: What You Need to Know | University of Denver

The aspen leaves are turning their bright yellows and oranges, and the air has a slight chill, which means one thing: We’re in the heart of fall sports season at the University of Denver.

The regular seasons for men’s soccer, women’s soccer, women’s triathlon and women’s volleyball are well underway—some further along than others—with each team looking to reach their respective goals and stand out among the competition.

Whether it be on the pitch, the court or the course, here’s what you may have missed and what you should watch for during the remainder of Denver’s fall sports season.

Men’s soccer

Starting the season red hot, the DU men’s soccer team has no plans to let its foot off the gas. 

Denver (5-0-4) remains the No. 1 team in the country in the Top Drawer Soccer rankings for the second consecutive week. DU will begin conference play on Oct. 2 after a 10-day break.

The last time DU was atop the Top Drawer Soccer poll was October 2018. The team earned its 100th win at home against Seattle on Sunday—which they won 2-1.

Head coach Jamie Franks sees the team’s depth—more specifically, the team’s 13 returning players and 11 seniors—as one of the reasons he sees the team having success in the regular season and beyond.

“Whoever is winning the first team spots has to be doing it at a really high level with high standards and really positive behaviors every day, because if they don’t, there’s somebody in their position that’s creating internal competition,” Franks says.

Franks also touts his team’s work off the field and their investment in DU’s 4D Experience. Last season, the program finished fifth in average GPA (3.62) in NCAA Division I men’s soccer for the 2023-24 academic year—just 0.12 behind national leaders UNC Greensboro.

DU has finished in the top three academically in the country in each of the last eight seasons. 

The next time you can catch a game is on Oct. 2, when DU will face off against Oral Roberts at home for the first game of Summit League play.

Women’s soccer

Head Coach Julianne Sitch expects to see the big strides made by the team in the offseason pay off—and so far, they have: The women’s soccer program has six non-conference wins, which ties for the fifth-most in program history and the most since 2013.

Heading into her second season at the helm of the program, Sitch has grown both as a leader and a learner.

“I think (in my first season at DU) I learned a lot about myself as a person and as a coach, while also challenging myself to be coachable,” Sitch says. “The same way that I ask our team to be coachable, I have to hold myself to that same standard and have a growth mindset.”

The team (6-4-0) will begin conference play at Kansas City tonight before returning to Denver on Sept. 29 against North Dakota.

Ultimately, Sitch wants her team to be known for their integrity and character, both on and off the field.

“I believe when people meet us, they see a positive team, a team that wants to leave a legacy, a team that is inspiring and makes an impact in the community,” Sitch says.

Women’s triathlon

The women’s triathlon team is working toward a top three finish this season after the team narrowly missed the podium at last year’s national championship.

Entering her fifth season as the program’s first head coach, Barbara Perkins sees the team’s depth as one of its strongest assets.

“I think for the last couple years we’ve been an underdog. We’re hungry to prove what we can do. We bring people in that we can develop and make into better athletes and people,” she says.

The team has athletes at all levels to watch for: freshmen Beatrice Normand and Ava Plaff, sophomores Alex Campbell and Maira Carreau, and seniors Olivia Ebenstein, Avarie Faulkner and Clara Normand.

In addition to training in the offseason, Clara Normand—who is majoring in journalism and international studies—was the first member of the team to study abroad. During her time in Morocco last spring, she had the chance to interview residents of a small mountain village who survived a major earthquake in September 2023.

Carreau, who won DU triathlon’s first individual national title last season, has kept busy this summer and early fall competing around the world. Earlier this month, she earned her second consecutive Canadian National Championship and placed 19th in the World Triathlon Cup race in Valencia, Spain. 

The sophomore has seen the sport grow significantly, especially at the collegiate level, since she started swimming competitively at the age of six. 

“I’m really grateful (to be able to compete at the collegiate level), and I will do the most possible to help the sport grow and spread the word to people,” Carreau says.

Women’s volleyball

The women’s volleyball team also hopes to build on last season’s success—and that of head coach Megan Pendergast, who was new to the team last year.

“We have to find that next gear and helping them find that has been a journey, and we’re still on it, but it’s been a lot of fun,” Pendergast says. 

Last year, Denver finished with a 12-4 record in conference play and, for the first time since 2020, earned a share of the Summit League regular season title. 

Recognized by the conference as one of two “Players to Watch” on the team, fifth-year player Molly Mirabelli was named Summit League Volleyball Defensive Peak Player of the Week on Sept. 17 for the first time in her career.

Wrapping up their non-conference schedule 5-5, the program will begin Summit League play tonight in Hamilton Gymnasium against South Dakota. 

“The goals are always going to be to see how well we can play Denver volleyball. Wins and losses come with that, but we really try to focus on how we play on our side of the net,” Pendergast says.