TOWSON, Md. – Freshman attacker Erika Cavallo and sophomore midfielder Samantha Brookhart combined for eight goals and four assists to lead the Towson University women's lacrosse to a 16-3 win over the University of California on Saturday afternoon in Johnny Unitas ® Stadium. The Tigers (3-3) used goals from seven players to snap a three-game losing streak.

The 16 goals scored by the Tigers were the most in a game since April 11 of last year against William & Mary. The 13-goal differential was the largest for the Tigers since 2010 when they beat George Mason 18-5.

"From our last game we had a big emphasis on being disciplined offensively, I thought we really worked to generate some better offensive opportunities," said Towson Head Coach Sonia LaMonica. "We had a little trouble on the draws today and Cal was competing really well but defensively once we applied high pressure we were able to convert some plays."

The Tigers wasted little time in getting the offense going as freshman midfielder Kaitlyn Montalbano converted a free position attempt at 28:53. Montalbano pushed the Tigers' lead to 2-0 with her second goal at 25:49. Cavallo scored her first of the day on a free position shot at 19:32 and freshman midfielder Emily Gillingham added a goal which gave the Tigers a 4-0 lead at 18:02.

Cal (1-6) sandwiched a pair of goals around a Tiger goal from Brookhart. The Golden Bears' second goal came from Michaela Bird at 4:17 and made it a 5-2 game. The Tigers struck one more time before the half as senior attacker Taylor Moore found a cutting Cavallo with a pass at 2:15. Cavallo buried it in the back of the net and Towson took a 6-2 lead at the break.
Towson outshot California 14-6 in the first half while the Golden Bears won five of the nine draw controls.

Back-to-back goals from Cavallo to open the second half pushed the Towson lead to 8-2. Her first goal was assisted by junior midfielder Breanna Hamm and completed her second hat trick of the season while her second came on a free position shot. Brookhart kept the Towson offense rolling as she scored at 23:47 and then assisted on goals by redshirt sophomore midfielder Michelle Gildea and Hamm. That 6-0 run by the Tigers bridged the first and second halves and gave Towson an 11-2 advantage with 19:16 to play.

Cal briefly halted the Towson run as Gaby Christman scored her second of the day on a free position shot at 16:50.

The Tigers then scored five times in the game's final 16 minutes of action. Montalbano scored to complete her hat trick while Cavallo tallied her fifth of the game on another free position shot. Sophomore attacker Gabby Cha scored twice during the run while Brookhart added a goal and an assist. That made the final score 16-3.

Senior Kelsea Donnelly was forced to make just two saves in 50:41 of action and claimed the win in goal. Junior Alyssa Saxon played the final 9:19 for the Tigers and was not forced to make a stop. Kate Gutierrez made three saves in 40:44 for the Golden Bears. Helen Hansen made two saves in the final 19:16.

Towson had a 15-4 edge in shots taken in the second half and finished the game with a 29-10 advantage in that category. The Tigers won eight of 11 draw controls in the second half and finished the game with a 12-8 edge.

Cavallo had a season-high five goals on five shots taken to lead the Tigers. Three of her five tallies came on free position shots. She also added an assist, two draw controls and a caused turnover. Cavallo is the first Tiger to score five goals in a game since Andi Raymond did so last year against William & Mary. Brookhart contributed three goals and three assists in the contest while adding two draw controls. Brookhart's hat trick was the first of her career. Montalbano was the third Tiger to record a hat trick in the game. Hamm posted a goal, an assist, four draw controls and a ground ball.

Christman led California with two goals, an assist, two draw controls and a caused turnover.

Towson returns to action on Wednesday, March 25 when it hosts UC Davis in a 7 p.m. game in Unitas Stadium.