TOWSON, Md. – A strong defensive effort and a balanced attack lifted the Towson University women's lacrosse team to a 9-1 victory over Monmouth University on Wednesday afternoon in the season opener for both squads. Freshman Angie Benson made five saves in her first career appearance to help the Tigers surrender their fewest goals in a game since 1990.

THE BASICS
Towson 9, Monmouth 1
Johnny Unitas® Stadium, Towson, Md.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Towson got on the board first as sophomore midfielder Emily Gillingham converted a free position shot with 26:13 showing on the clock for the early lead.
• The Tigers added to their lead as sophomore attacker Jenna Kerr scored off a pass from freshman midfielder Katie Sciandra at 21:07.
• Monmouth got on the board at 15:23 as Kate Ryan scored what proved to be the Hawks' only goal of the game on a free position shot.
• Towson scored the final three goals of the half. Senior midfielder Breanna Hamm dodged through traffic for a goal at 7:41. Freshman attacker Carly Tellekamp had a hand in each of the final two goals of the half for the Tigers. She assisted on Kerr's second of the game before picking up the helper on redshirt junior midfielder Michelle Gildea's tally.
• The Tigers and Hawks battled back-and-forth for the first 13 plus minutes of the second half but neither team was able to find the back of the net.
• Junior attacker Michaela Duranti became the Tigers' fifth goal scorer of the night, with her tally at 17:13.
• The Tigers caught a break at 9:44 as Monmouth goalkeeper Caroline Huelster was caught all the way over by the Tiger bench when a foul was called. Hamm took the ball on the restart and found sophomore midfielder Kaitlyn Montalbano cutting towards the cage for the goal.
• Towson scored two more times before the end of the period. Gillingham cashed in on her second free position goal of the game. The Tigers' final goal came just before time expired as junior midfielder Samantha Brookhart passed to freshman midfielder Natalie Sulmonte in front of the cage. Sulmonte buried it home for the 9-1 final.

QUOTABLE

• "It was a great win for us today," said Towson head coach Sonia LaMonica. "It was a very good defensive game today, holding any team to one goal is a great achievement. Lots of players stepped up and caused turnovers and made the plays tonight. Looking at the stats shows it was a good defensive effort. We showed some good patience of offense but we still have some work to do."

BEYOND THE BOX SCORE

• It was the first time since 1990 that the Tigers held an opponent to one goal in a game. It is also tied for the second lowest goal total allowed by the Tigers in program history.
• Towson had 14 caused turnovers in the game to Monmouth's six. Eight Tigers recorded at least one caused turnover in the game and that group was led by Montalbano, who had four.
• Both teams recorded five draw controls while Towson held an 18-10 edge in ground balls.
• Hamm, Kerr, Tellekamp and Gillingham all recorded two points in the game for the Tigers. Kerr and Gillingham's both came via two goals. Tellekamp had two assists while Hamm had a goal and an assist.
• Huelster made six saves in the loss for Monmouth.  

The Tigers are back in action on Saturday, Feb. 13 as they travel to Jacksonville for a 1 p.m. game. The game will be available to watch on ESPN3.