Pye arrived in Marquette in the fall of 1987 and served as a backup to Mike Jeffrey in his freshman season. He took over the starting role at the start of his sophomore season and provided an immediate boost in goal. NMU went from 6th to 2nd in the WCHA and Pye led the Wilcats to their first WCHA Championship, capturing MVP honors. Northern Michigan wasn't able to make it out of the First Round of the NCAA Tournament but the Buffalo Sabres had seen enough to select Pye in the 6th round of NHL Draft.