AURORA | Who knows how many NCAA Division I men’s lacrosse national championships the University of Denver will win before Colby Moore arrives, but the Grandview defender plans to be there when he can.
Moore, who just completed his freshman year in the fall, made his verbal commitment to the reigning national champion Pioneers public on Thursday via social media.
The 5-foot-8, 155-pound Moore played defense on a Wolves team that qualified for the Class 5A playoffs and seems primed to join the top tier of teams after posting a 12-4 record in the first year under coach Patrick Chapla.
“Thank you to all my friends and family for supporting me through this process,” Moore said via Twitter. “I can happily say that I’m a Pioneer.”
While Moore still has three prep seasons ahead before he officially can sign with Denver, Chapla can see why an elite college program would be interested in Moore at such an early stage in his career.
“Colby has unlimited potential; he could be the best defender in the state in a year,” Chapla told the Sentinel. “His strengths come from his hockey background as he is incredibly athletic and has great hands and stick work. He is a smart defenseman who uses his footwork before his stick and never seems to be out of position.”
Denver coach Bill Tierney and his staff can’t publicly discuss players until they are signed per NCAA rules.
The Pioneers — who downed Maryland 10-5 on May 25 to win the NCAA national title — currently have one player from an Aurora school on the roster in long stick midfielder Brian Wegner, who went to Regis Jesuit.
Thank you to all my friends and family for supporting me through this process. I can happily say that I’m a Pioneer. pic.twitter.com/zZHMCpUpCg
— Colby (@colbymoore12) July 30, 2015
Courtney Oakes is Sports Editor of the Aurora Sentinel. Reach him at 303-750-7555 or sports@aurorasentinel.com. Twitter: @aurorasports. FB: Aurora Prep Sentinel
Isn’t this counting your chickens before they hatch? This is all based on a lot of assumptions. Anything could happen in three years that could completely change this scenario.