Opening Faceoff
The Tigers return from their only two-game road swing of the 2016 regular season, going 1-1 in those game. Towson fell to No. 11 Johns Hopkins 14-8 last weekend, but topped Ohio State 10-9 in overtime at Ohio Stadium. Towson bounced back from the loss, improving to 14-14 under head coach Shawn Nadelen following a loss. The Tigers are 5-1 in the last two seasons after suffering a setback. The Tigers open a three-game home stand on Saturday against Furman, followed by Binghamton (March 26) and open CAA play against Drexel (April 2).

In The National Rankings
Towson remained in the top 10 in all three major polls this week. The Tigers were No. 9 in this week's Cascade/Maverik Inside Lacrosse Media Poll, while grabbing the No. 10 spot in both the Nike/USILA Coaches Polll and the Nike/Lacrosse Magazine Top 20. Ohio State received votes in all three polls. Towson will be playing its second-straight game as a top-10 team, the first time that has happened since the 2003 postseason.

Updating the 2016 Tigers
The Tigers survived a second-half rally from the Ohio State Buckeyes on Tuesday as redshirt freshman Ian Kirby stung the game-winner with 34 seconds left in overtime. Five Tigers are in double figures now, with Ryan Drenner (11-9-20) setting the pace. Joe Seider (14-2-16) is second with Spencer Parks (8-7-15) catching up. Ben McCarty (10-2-12) and Mike Lynch (7-5-12) round out the double-digit point getters. Once again, Towson's defense kept an opponent to single figures, the sixth time this season in seven games. Tewaaraton Trophy candidate Tyler White backstops the defense, carrying a 6.81 goals against average, fourth-best in the country. Towson had a rough go at faceoffs on Tuesday, winning just six of the game's 22 draws. Alec Burckley leads the team with 54 wins in 101 tries, along with 26 groundballs. Stephen Stillwell is 11-21 (.524).

Scouting The Paladins
Two Furman players are in double digits this season. Jonah Moore (8-4-12) and David Williamson (7-4-11) lead the team, with Moore and Matthew VanGalen taking a team-high 23 shots. Hil Blaze has been a bright spot for Furman at the X, winning 58 of his 113 draws (.513), along with 22 groundballs. Reilly McDermott has made 56 saves at a 43.1 percent clip. He has a 12.87 goals against average in his 345 minutes of action. The Paladins are slow out of the gate, with opponents out-scoring them 21-7 in the first period, but the fourth quarter is close with Furman -3 in that period.

Towson-Furman History
Saturday's meeting will be the first-ever meeting between the Tigers and start-up Furman. This is the Paladins' third year as a varsity program. However, the Tigers are familiar with Furman's head coach, Richie Meade, who guided the United States Naval Academy for 17 years (1995-2011). Meade is 2-3 all-time against Towson. Saturday's game will be the first meeting between the programs' head coaches.

Towson-Furman By the Numbers
All-Time Series Record    First Meeting
    at Towson    First Meeting
    at Ohio State    First Meeting
    at Neutral Sites    First Meeting
    at Unknown Sites    First Meeting
First Meeting    March 19, 2016
Last Meeting    First Meeting
        n/a
Streak    First Meeting

Last Time Out vs. Furman
Saturday's game will be the first-ever meeting between the Tigers and the Paladins. Towson has never played an institution from the state of South Carolina in the program's history. Towson's Shawn Nadelen will face Furman's Richie Meade for the first time as head coaches. The Tigers take on a Richie Meade-coached program for the first time since 2011, a 14-11 Navy win in Annapolis.

Careers Against Furman
Saturday's game is the first-ever meeting between the Tigers and the Paladins. However, one Tiger has logged time against Furman. During his sophomore season at North Carolina, current Towson senior attackman Spencer Parks started against the Paladins in Furman's second game as a varsity program. Parks started for the Tar Heels, finishing with two goals on five shots.

At Home as a Top-10
Towson will be playing its first game at Johnny Unitas ® Stadium as a top-10 program for the first time since May 14, 2005 in the first round of the NCAA Tournament against No. 5 Cornell. The Big Red won that game 12-11, but the Tigers have won more games at home as a top-10 team. Towson is 24-18 at home as a top-10 team, dating back to the 1980 season when Towson elevated to Division I. Towson's last home win as a top-10 team came on April 24, 2004 as the 10th-ranked Tigers topped Drexel 13-8.

Overtime Thriller
On Tuesday, redshirt freshman Ian Kirby drilled the game-winning shot from just a few yards north of goal-line extended. That rip gave the Tigers their first overtime win since March 22, 2013 in a 7-6 win at Delaware. Since head coach Shawn Nadelen took over time program in 2012, the Tigers are 4-2 in overtime games. The Tigers have made the NCAA Tournament in two of the three previous seasons when Towson is involved in an overtime game.

Goals on Goals on Goals
With an improved offense, it's no coincidence that the Tigers are off to their best seven-game start since the 1992 campaign when the Tigers also opened 6-1. So far in 2016, Towson has racked up 72 goals, nine more than they had in the first seven games of 2015. This year marks the first time since 2007 the Tigers have scored 70 or more goals in the first seven games. The 2007 squad put up 71 markers in the first seven games of the year.

Seider in the Career Top 10
Junior attackman Joe Seider has ripped off 272 career shots in just two and a half seasons with the program. Seider is now alone in ninth-place all-time with hit attempts, just one behind John Conley (273), who played from 1982-85. Seider is within striking distance of former teammate Andrew Hodgson, who is seventh all-time with 279 tries. Glenn Smith sits atop the leader board with 458 shots from 1988-91. 

Burckley in the Career Top 10
With his sixth faceoff win against Johns Hopkins University on March 12, junior faceoff man Alec Burckley moved into the program's top-10 career list for faceoff wins. Burckley has 243 career wins, tying with Tom Watson, who won the same number from 1977-1980. Next on the list is Brian Cesarski, who won 274 draws from 1990-93. Towson Hall of Famer Justin Berry holds the career record at 507 from 1998-2001 and is the only player in program history to win more than 500 faceoffs.

Bouncing Back from a Loss -Updated
Towson suffered its first loss of the season at No. 11 Johns Hopkins on March 12, after its best start at 5-0 since 1992. After winning 10-9 at Ohio State on March 15, the Tigers are  14-14 after taking a loss since Nadelen took over the program in 2012, including season-ending losses to season-opening wins the next season. Last season, Towson took back-to-back losses once in the final two games of the regular season. Towson went 4-1 after losses last year and is 6-1 after the last six losses, including the First Round defeat at No. 1 Notre Dame to the 2016 season opening win over Mercer.

Looking for the First One - Updated
The Tigers picked up their first win at Ohio State since moving to the Division I ranks in 1980. The Tigers have met the Buckeyes four times in that span and are 2-2 against Ohio State. Tuesday's game was the Tigers' second trip to Columbus since elveating to Division I in 1980 and first since 2013.

In it for the Long Haul - Updated
Tuesday's game was the farthest the Tigers will travel in the 2016 regular season. Towson flew out Monday for Columbus and returned to Baltimore-Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport on Wednesday. Johnny Unitas Stadium, home of the Tigers, sits roughly 415 miles from Ohio Stadium, the site of Tuesday's contest. The trip was roughly 830 round-trip miles. On April 9, Towson travels 356 miles to Amherst, Massachusetts to take on the Minutemen at Garber Field. The Tigers round out the regular season on April 30 at Shuart Stadium, home of the Hofstra Pride, a trip of 215 miles. Those two April games are the only CAA road trips for Towson this season.

Taking on the Alma Mater
Tuesday's game was the second-straight game a member of the Towson coaching staff took on his alma mater. Associate head coach Anthony Gilardi was a two-time All-Great Western Lacrosse League player for Ohio State and makes his second trip to Columbus as a member of the Tiger staff (2013). Head coach Shawn Nadelen coached Towson against his alma mater last Saturday, Johns Hopkins, where he enjoyed an All-American career. Assistant coach Dan Cocchi and volunteer assistant coach Neil Hutchinson both graduated from Towson University.

You Get a Hat Trick! And You Get a Hat Trick! And You... Don't.
So far in 2016, the Tigers have had at least one hat trick in six of the first seven games. Spencer Parks and Joe Seider struck three times each in the season opener against Mercer (Feb. 12). Ryan Drenner did it in back-to-back games against Mount St. Mary's (Feb. 20), and with four goals against No. 17 Georgetown (Feb. 27). Joe Seider had four goals against No. 5 Loyola (March 2). Ben McCarty did it most recently with three goals against UMBC (March 5) and at No. 11 Johns Hopkins on March 12. Despite Parks, Lynch and Seider scoring twice early in the game, no Tiger could manage the hat trick at Ohio State.

White Wins Three Weekly Awards
After going 2-0 last week and making 19 combined saves, redshirt senior Tyler White picked up three weekly awards. The big man was named CAA Player of the Week on March 8, followed up by NCAA Defensive Player of the Week on March 9. On Friday, White was named the Baltimore Sun's Player of the Week. White finished his games against No. 5 Loyola and UMBC with a goals against average of 6.67 and stopped 61.3 percent of the shots he faced, limiting the Greyhounds and Retrievers to just eight and four goals, respectively. At that point, White and his defense had not allowed an opponent to score double digits this season.

With a Win Saturday
- A win on Saturday would be the Tigers' first over an opponent from the state of South Carolina. The Tigers would improve to 5-0 over teams located south of North Carolina. Towson is 3-0 versus Mercer (Georgia) and 1-0 against Jacksonville (Florida). 
- Towson would improve to 5-0 at Unitas Stadium in 2016, the most home wins since 2014 when the Tigers went 6-3. 
- The Tigers would improve to 4-0 all-time at home against Furman's head coach Richie Meade.

Baltimore Top Five Beware
For a second-straight season, the Tigers upended a local team ranked No. 5 in the polls. On March 2, the Tigers topped No. 5 Loyola 10-8 at the Ridley Athletic Complex. In the 2015 season opener at Johnny Unitas Stadium, the Tigers stunned No. 5 Johns Hopkins 7-5, the team's first win over the Blue Jays since 1996.

Surviving Murderer's Row
Towson got through arguably its toughest part of the nonconference schedule with a win on Tuesday. In a five-game stretch, the Tigers faced three nationally-ranked opponents, and a fourth that was receiving votes. Towson went 4-1 in that stretch, beating No. 17 Georgetown (10-7), No. 5 Loyola (10-8), UMBC (14-6) and receiving votes Ohio State (10-9) in overtime. The lone Towson setback in that stretch was at No. 11 Johns Hopkins.

Back-to-Back Over Ranked Foes
In the Tigers' toughest stretch of non-conference games, slated to face four ranked opponents in five games, Towson won back-to-back games over opponents ranked in the Top 20. At home on Feb. 27, the then-No. 13 Tigers bested No. 17 Georgetown 10-7, followed by a 10-8 win by the No. 11 Tigers over No. 5 Loyola. It marks the first time since the 2013 CAA Tournament Towson beat back-to-back opponents who were ranked. Towson beat No. 18 Drexel 11-8 on May 1, followed up by an 11-10 win over No. 9 Penn State in the CAA Championship game, winning the league's automatic qualifier to the NCAA Tournament.

The Dog Days of Non-Conference Play
The Tigers have nine non-conference games on the slate for the 2016 season. Towson has hit the midway point of that run, sitting at 6-1. The game against UMBC was the third-straight game the Tigers faced an opponent that uses a dog as its mascot. Towson beat No. 17 Georgetown (Hoyas/Bulldog) 10-7, followed by a 10-8 win over No. 5 Loyola (Greyhound). Towson swept opponents this year with dog mascots following its 14-6 win over UMBC (Retrievers) on March 5.

Against the Top 20
The Tigers have knocked off two ranked opponents so far in 2016. At home on Feb. 27, the Tigers bested No. 17 Georgetown, followed by a 10-8 win at cross-town rival No. 5 Loyola on March 2. The Tigers are 15-10 under head coach Shawn Nadelen when playing as a ranked team.

Defense Like a Brick Wall
The Tiger defense is one of the best in the country. The Tigers are ranked sixth in total defense (7.29 goals allowed per game). Just once in 2016 have the Tigers allowed 10 or more goals, coming last weekend against No. 11 Johns Hopkins. 

"Good eye, Sniper"
Redshirt freshman Ian Kirby has been the go-to man on the power play, hitting for five goals on just 10 shots. Five of his six career goals are extra-man chances, including two in each back-to-back games. Joe Seider led Towson's 2015 man-up goals with seven, with Kirby quickly closing in on that total in just three games. Kirby is ranked 27th in the country in shot percentage (.500) and is second in individual man-up goals, just one behind Denver's Brendan Bomberry. 

Local Market
This year, Towson has 14 games on its regular season slate. Of those 14 games, nine will be played at Johnny Unitas Stadium. This season, Towson won't have to travel far for two of its five road games as the Tigers traveled down the road to Loyola (March 2) and Johns Hopkins (March 12). However, what the Tigers gain in local games, they make up for in true road games, covering roughly 2,000 miles going to Ohio State (March 15), Massachusetts (April 9) and Hofstra (April 30).

Local Market Part Deux
While it's not uncommon at all for the Tigers to face all three of the local institutions in the same season, this year's edition of the Battle for Greater Baltimore will have a unique twist: Towson will play all three schools in consecutive games. The Tigers went to Loyola on March 2, host UMBC on March 5 and then travel down Charles Street to Johns Hopkins on March 12. 

Hodgson on the Move
After being drafted in Major League Lacrosse's Supplemental Draft in the offseason, former Towson standout midfielder Andrew Hodgson was traded on March 3. The Long Islander will have a chance to play his professional lacrosse close to home as he was transferred from the Denver Outlaws to the New York Lizards as part of a three-player, two draft pick trade. Hodgson and Duke defender Luke Duprey were sent to New York for Brody Eastwood, a fourth-round draft pick in the 2017 Collegiate Draft and a seventh-round pick in the 2017 Supplemental Draft. Hodgson, who is an assistant coach at Manhattan College, will have the chance to make his pro debut on April 23 as the Lizards host the Rochester Rattlers at 5 p.m. at Hofstra's Shuart Stadium.

Kirby Named CAA Rookie of the Week (2/23)
After a two-goal game against Mount St. Mary's, redshirt freshman Ian Kirby was named CAA Rookie of the Week (Feb. 23). Kirby took three shots in the Tigers' 9-5 win over in-state foe Mount St. Mary's, hitting for paydirt twice. Kirby has emerged as Towson's top man-up threat in the early goings, scoring three goals in his first two games, all on the extra-man.

Seider Named CAA Player of the Week (2/16)
The CAA office announced Joe Seider as the Player of the Week (Feb. 16) in the first conference report of the season. Seider is the first Tiger to win a weekly award in the first report since he was tabbed Rookie of the Week during the 2014 season. In the Tigers' 11-2 win over Mercer, Seider finished with four points on three goals and one assist. He paced the game with 11 shots while helping Towson to double digits for the fifth time in Towson's last six games, dating back to last season.

White Named to Tewaaraton Trophy, Presented by Under Armour, Watch List
Redshirt senior goalie Tyler White was one of 50 NCAA Men's Lacrosse student-athletes named to a Watch List for the sports highest honor: The Tewaaraton Trophy, presented by Under Armour. The announcement was made in the evening of Feb. 23. White is one of two CAA players named to the watch list as he was joined by Hofstra's Sam Llinares. The Tigers have had three different players in the Shawn Nadelen era (since 2012) to be named to the Tewaaraton Trophy Watch List. Last season Andrew Hodgson was named while former standout Thomas DeNapoli was named twice (2013, 2014).

White Named Senior CLASS Award Candidate
Redshirt senior goalie Tyler White was one of 20 NCAA Division I student-athletes named to the Senior CLASS Award candidate list, announced Feb. 16. White is one of two CAA players named as candidates, joined by UMass's Kyle Karaska. 

To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must be classified as an NCAA Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence: community, classroom, character and competition. CLASS is an acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School ®. 

The 20 candidates will be narrowed to 10 finalists later in the season, and those 10 names will be placed on the official ballot. Ballots will be distributed through a nationwide voting system to media, coaches and fans, who will select one candidate who best exemplifies excellence in the four Cs of community, classroom, character and competition.

Preseason Nods
Redshirt senior Tyler White earned several preseason accolades, including Honorable Mention All-America by Inside Lacrosse. The Elmira Heights, New York native was also named to the Preseason All-CAA Team, along with junior attackman Joe Seider. Ryan Drenner, Mike Lowe and Tyler Mayes all earned Honorable Mention Preseason All-CAA plaudits.

Defense + Offense = Success
With a defense as heralded as Towson's, it's not a surprise to followers of the team that the Tigers have lots of success when the offense and defense pair well. Since head coach Shawn Nadelen took over in 2012, the Tigers are 26-5 in games when Towson scores double digits. When Towson's defense limits opponents to single digits, the Tigers are a whopping 40-7 in that same time, including the thrilling 10-9 overtime win at Ohio State. On 22 occasions, the Tigers have scored in double figures while holding opponents to single digits, obviously a 22-0 record.