ANNAPOLIS, Md. - Senior defender Melissa Gomes scored the game's only goal in the 10th minute as the Tigers (3-2-2) earned their third win in the last five games with a 1-0 victory over Charleston Southern University (4-3-0) at the Navy Invitational at the Glenn Warner Soccer Facility on Sunday afternoon.
The win marked the Tigers' second consecutive shutout after Towson and Manhattan played to a 0-0 draw in the opening game of the tournament on Friday afternoon.
Just over nine minutes into the first half, Gomes took a pass from freshman forward Katie Holtzapple after a short corner and scored on a shot from 22 yards out to give Towson a 1-0 lead it did not relinquish. It was Gomes' second career goal.
Led by junior goalkeeper Jocelyn Papciak, the Tiger defense limited the Buccaneers to just six shots. Papciak, who earned her sixth career shutout, made two saves en route to the victory.
Junior goalkeeper Amy Arroyo made a season-high eight saves for the Buccaneers, who suffered their second loss in the last three games.
The Tigers will finish their nine-game road trip next weekend with a pair of games at the Villanova Tournament. After playing Charlotte on Friday afternoon, the Tigers will face Monmouth on Sunday afternoon.
College Women's Soccer: Towson University 1, Charleston Southern University 0
Towson (3-2-2) 1-0 / 1
Charleston Southern (4-3-0) 0-0 / 0
Goals: TOW - Melissa Gomes 1 (9:05). Assists: TOW - Katie Holtzapple 1. Saves: TOW - Jocelyn Papciak 2 (90:00, 0 goals allowed); CSU - Amy Arroyo 8 (90:00, 1 goals allowed). Shots: TOW - 21; CSU - 6. Corner Kicks: TOW - 3; CSU - 6. Attendance: 55.
Corner Kicks: Gomes was named as the Navy Invitational MVP while Papciak and sophomore midfielder Cheyenne Skidmore were also selected to the All-Tournament Team ... The Tigers were declared the tournament champions after posting a 1-0-1 record in their two games ... Navy and Charleston Southern had a 1-1-0 record while Manhattan had a 0-1-1 mark ... The Tigers and the Buccaneers were meeting for the first time since the 1994 season ... With the win on Sunday, Towson evened the all-time series with Charleston Southern at 2-2 ... Gomes' only other career goal came on September 4, 2008 in a 1-0 overtime victory over Rider ... The Tigers have allowed just one goal in the last 380 minutes, dating back to their 1-0 win over Penn on September 3 ... The Tigers took a season-high 21 shots against Charleston Southern on Sunday afternoon ... The Tigers have been held to just six goals in their seven games this season ... Charleston Southern senior forward Marky Boyce was held without a goal for the first time this season, snapping a seven-game scoring streak ... She had scored nine goals in the Buccaneers' first six games, including a goal against Navy on Friday night ... All seven of the Tigers' games this season have been decided by a goal or less.
