PHILADELPHIA — Denver’s last two seasons ended with a loss in the NCAA Tournament semifinals.
Wesley Berg ensured it wouldn’t happen again this year.
Berg zipped the game-winner past Notre Dame goalie Shane Doss with 2:03 left in overtime off a Tyler Pace feed as the fourth-seeded Pioneers reached the national title game for the first time with an 11-10 defeat of Notre Dame at Lincoln Financial Field.
PHOTOS: DU defeats Notre Dame to advance to NCAA championship
Denver (16-2) recovered in the extra period after the top-seeded Fighting Irish (12-3) scored four goals in the final 3:38 of regulation to tie it.
“I was just thankful the game was over,” Berg said. “When you’re up by that much you’re watching the clock and counting down the seconds. Once we got to overtime, we just wanted to get the game finished as fast as possible. It was a huge relief scoring.”
Tyler Pace had two goals and two assists and Ryan LaPlante made 13 saves for the Pioneers, who had lost in their previous semifinal appearances in 2011, 2013 and 2014. Denver will meet sixth-seeded Maryland (15-3) in Monday’s NCAA final. Maryland beat Johns Hopkins 12-11 Saturday.
“It’s amazing for the program to get past that step,” LaPlante said. “We don’t want to stop there. It’s been our ultimate goal to win the national championship since we got to school in September. We just want to work [toward] that on Monday and you have one game to do that.”
Sergio Perkovic scored five goals, all in the fourth quarter, for the Fighting Irish (12-3), who lost to Denver for the second time this season — both 11-10 in overtime.
RELATED: Columnist Mark Kiszla writes new school, same spot for Connor Cannizzaro
Denver never trailed, and took a 6-4 lead into the final quarter after senior long pole Mike Riis scored in transition with 0.9 seconds left in the third. Notre Dame mustered only one goal in a stretch of 30:15, and Denver managed to build leads of 9-5 and 10-6.
But the Irish, employing a 10-man ride at times, rallied back behind Perkovic, a powerful sophomore midfielder who almost single-handedly hauled his team back into it. But it was Nick Ossello who collected the tying goal with 9 seconds left in regulation to force overtime.
“Especially with an end like that where you give up four in four minutes after giving up six in 56 minutes, you’re kind of bewildered a little bit,” Denver coach Bill Tierney said. “I think the guys let the emotion of the moment get a little bit to them, and Perkovic’s an animal.”
Denver, which dominated possession for much of the first 50 minutes, forced a turnover on Notre Dame attackman Matt Kavanagh early in the extra session. The Pioneers then ran a minute of offense before calling timeout.
Tierney said it was set up for sophomore Zach Miller, who didn’t get a look he liked. The Pioneers pulled it back and continued seeking a decent opportunity against the disciplined Irish, eventually getting it to Berg from about 10 yards out.
“I knew if we got it into Wesley’s hands, there was going to be a good chance that it was going to be a good shot, that’s for sure,” Tierney said.
Just one obstacle remains for the Pioneers to become the first team west of the Appalachians to win a Division I lacrosse tournament in the event’s 45-year history.
“It’s another step forward,” Berg said. “We haven’t been here yet, but the most important thing is winning the next one.”
