No. 13 Buffs Return Home vs Hatters

BOULDER – No. 13 Colorado returns home for the first time in 21 days, playing host to the Stetson Hatters on Sunday. The game, which was originally scheduled to be the team's season debut at Prentup Field, will now be played indoors at the Ford Practice Facility due to the forecasted weather.

The Buffaloes return with a 4-2 record, going 1-2 on the recent road swing, which featured three consecutive games against top-ranked opponents. Colorado picked up its win at then-No. 22 Army but was competitive throughout the road trip, falling to No. 18 Stony Brook and No. 8 Michigan by a combined three goals.

Colorado has been competitive in both of its losses this season, not letting Stony Brook or Michigan get more than a five-point lead. And even when things haven't gone according to plan for the Buffs, they have been able to claw back into contention with momentum-shifting scoring runs against both the Seawolves and Wolverines.

If the Buffaloes needed to address anything following its recent road trip, it's the consistency with setting up the offense and getting into the system.

"We just have to do better," head coach Ann Elliott Whidden said following the loss at Michigan. "We have to do better at executing in possessions. We have to do better at valuing possessions. And we have to do better in a lot of areas as we transition from defense to offense."

Two areas the Buffs have had struggles in this season have been clears and draw controls. Colorado sits near the bottom of the Big 12 this season in both clear % and draw control %, at 84.1% and 44.0%, respectively. In contrast, the Buffs finished top 25 in the nation last season in both categories with a 91.2 clear % and a 56.1 draw control %.

The Buffs, who have won the draw control battle just twice this season, have been able to overcome those missed opportunities by making up for them in other areas. Notably, forcing turnovers. CU ranks 26th in the nation with its Big 12-leading 10.17 caused turnovers per game. Individually, Jess Peluso, Lily Assini, and Molly Reed rank third, fourth, and fifth in the conference in caused turnovers.

"For us, it obviously puts us in a position where possession matters, and you have to make that up in other ways defensively," Whidden noted following the road trip. "We're able to get a stop, we can't turn the ball over in the clear…I think we put ourselves in a spot, despite the draw controls [at Michigan], to be in that game. We have to find a way to win those, because we won in the turnovers and the ground balls."

Stetson will be acclimated by the time they arrive in Boulder on Sunday. The Hatters' first trip to Colorado will start with a date with Denver on Friday night. The Buffs and Hatters have met twice previously, with both games being played in DeLand, Fla.

The Hatters (0-6) have allowed 20.0 goals per game this season, giving up more than 20 goals three times.

First draw is set for noon MT on ESPN+.

Season and single-game tickets are on sale now at CUBuffs.com/WlaxTix

For more information on Colorado Lacrosse, please visit cubuffs.com/wlax. Fans of the Buffs can follow @cubuffswlax on Instagram, X, TikTok, and Facebook.