BALTIMORE, Md. ? Looking to extend their win streak to four straight games, the Tigers (4-5) went into their game against sixth-ranked UMBC on Tuesday hoping to ruin the Retrievers' three-game win streak. However, the Retrievers (7-2) turned on the pressure in the second half and held off the Tigers en route to a 14-4 victory at UMBC Stadium.
Senior midfielder Peet Poillon tied a career high by scoring four goals as the Retrievers defeated the Tigers for the third straight time.
“UMBC is a very good team and it was pretty easy to see why they are the sixth-ranked team in the nation tonight,” Towson Coach Tony Seaman said. “They played very well and we didn't play well anywhere on the field against them.
“UMBC shoots the ball very well and that is why they are beating people,” Seaman added. “They had many opportunities in the first half and they scored on a number of them.”
After the teams traded goals in the opening 13 minutes, the Retrievers took a 3-1 advantage early in the second quarter when Poillon scored back-to-back goals. With 10:53 remaining in the first half, junior midfielder Will Harrington scored an extra-man goal off an assist from junior midfielder Brock Armour to narrow the deficit to 3-2.
However, the Retrievers answered with consecutive goals from Poillon and sophomore Rob Grimm for a 5-2 advantage.
Freshman attackman Sean Maguire converted a pass from senior attackman Bill McCutcheon with 2:44 remaining in the second quarter to close the UMBC cushion to 5-3, but goals by Poillon and junior midfielder Kyle Wimer just 28 seconds apart upped the Retrievers' advantage to 7-3 at the intermission.
At the end of the first half, the Retrievers were called for three penalties, which gave the Tigers a six-on-three advantage. Just 18 seconds into the third quarter, Armour converted the opportunity by scoring his sixth goal of the season, an unassisted marker past senior goalkeeper Jeremy Blevins.
However, the Tigers failed to score again as UMBC went on a seven-goal run for a commanding 14-4 advantage. Grimm scored a goal and added three assists during the spurt while senior midfielder Alex Hopmann contributed a pair of goals.
While Poillon led the Retrievers with his second “hat trick” of the season, Grimm set a career high by recording five points. He scored two goals with three assists.
Blevins made 12 saves and added eight ground balls for the Retrievers, who outshot Towson by a 35-32 margin.
Maguire led the Tigers with two goals in the loss while Armour tallied a goal with an assist.
“You can't win games at this level without hitting the goal,” Coach Seaman said. “We had four of five really good looks in the first half and missed on every one of them.”
The Tigers, who wrapped up a three-game road trip on Tuesday night, will return home on Saturday afternoon to host Sacred Heart in a Colonial Athletic Association game at Johnny Unitas® Stadium at 2 p.m.
Goals: TOW ? Sean Maguire 2, Brock Armour 1, Will Harrington 1; UMBC ? Peet Poillon 4, Alex Hopmann 3, Rob Grimm 2, Kyle Wimer 1, Chris Jones 1, Matt Latham 1, Christian Daly 1, Jordan Pierce 1. Assists: TOW ? Brock Armour 1, Elliott Domanic 1, Bill McCutcheon 1; UMBC ? Rob Grimm 3, Kyle Wimer 2, Alex Hopmann 1, Chris Jones 1. Saves: TOW ? Rob Wheeler 8 (45:00, 12 goals allowed), Travis Love 4 (15:00, 2 goals allowed); UMBC ? Jeremy Blevins 12 (60:00, 4 goals allowed). Shots: TOW ? 32; UMBC ? 35. Extra-Man Opportunities: TOW ? 2 for 6; UMBC ? 1 for 4. Attendance: 1,482.
