Opening Faceoff
The 2017 edition of the Towson men's lacrosse team makes its Johnny Unitas Stadium debut against local rival Loyola Wednesday night under the lights. It is Towson's first game at Unitas Stadium, where the 2016 won a program-record 11 games, since besting Hobart 18-5 on May 11, 2016 in a preliminary round game of the NCAA Tournament. Today ends a 294-day gameless drought for the men's side at Unitas.

In The National Rankings
Despite moving to 2-0, the Tigers slipped in the polls. Towson is 14th in the USILA Coaches' Poll, dropping one spot. The Tigers are seated 13th, slipping one spot from last week. In the US Lacrosse Magazine Top 20, Towson held firmly at 12th in this week's rankings.

The Homeward Bound Tigers
After opening the 2017 campaign with two-straight road games, Towson returns to its home at Minnegan Field at Johnny Unitas Stadium. Towson set a program record for home wins last season, racking up 11. The 2-0 Tigers are paced on offense by Ryan Drenner, who is on a 15-game point streak dating back to last season's match up at Ohio State. Sophomore attackman Jon Mazza is second in points (7) and leads the Tigers with seven goals. Joe Seider is tied with Mazza with seven points behind five goals and two helpers. The attack unit has a combined 268 career points, including 185 goals. Towson's defensive unit continues to gel as the Tigers lead the CAA in caused turnovers per game (10.50). LSM Tyler Mayes and close defenseman Chad Patterson are responsible for a combined 10 caused turnovers, half of Towson's team total. Josh Miller got his second-straight start in goal, making nine saves at Georgetown last weekend.

Scouting The Greyhounds
After a frustrating 0-2 start for Loyola, the Greyhounds rebounded last weekend with an 18-5 win at Lafayette on Saturday. The Loyola offense runs through two players: Pat Spencer (6g, 9a) and Alex McGovern (5g, 6a). The former had a strong outing against Lafayette, putting up eight points with five goals and three assists. McGovern has been steady, with one five-point game and a pair of three-point efforts. Between the pipes, Jacob Stover has stopped 24 shots, but has allowed 29 goals (.453). He carries a goals against average of 12.16 in his 143 minutes of work. Grant Limone has spotted in, played in nearly 30 minutes and making seven saves. Graham Savio has won 59.5 percent of his faceoffs (50-84)

Towson-Loyola History
Depending on how you travel, it's roughly six miles from Towson's Unitas Stadium to the Greyhounds' Ridley Athletic Complex. Wednesday's game will be the 60th meeting all-time between the rival schools Loyola holds a 31-28 edge over Towson. The two teams met twice last season, spliting the results. Towson won in the regular season at Loyola, but the Greyhounds claimed revenge in the NCAA Quarterfinals 400 miles away in Columbus, Ohio. Wednesday makes the third-straight regular season the teams will meet as ranked foes.

Towson-Loyola By the Numbers
All-Time Series Record Loyola 31-28
    at Towson Loyola 11-9
    at Loyola Loyola 12-11
    at Neutral Sites Tied 1-1
    at Unknown Sites Tied 7-7
First Meeting 1959, Loyola 8-6
Last Meeting May 22, 2016 
#7 Loyola 10, #10 Towson 8
Streak Loyola +1

Last Time Out vs. Loyola
After besting the then No. 5 Greyhounds 10-8 in the regular season, the Tigers fell to their local rival by the same count in Columbus, Ohio in the NCAA Tournament Quarterfinals. For his part, Ryan Drenner had a four-point, two-goal, two-assist day in Ohio. Then seniors Spencer Parks and Ben McCarty had a pair of goals apiece. The Tigers struggled at the X, winning just seven of the game's 22 draws. 

With a Win Wednesday
- Towson would improve to 3-0 for a second-straight season. It would be the first time the Tigers have such a record in back-to-back seasons in the Shawn Nadelen Era (2012) and the first time since 1988-1990.
- The Tigers would get back-to-back regular season wins over Loyola since grabbing three straight from 2005-07.
- Record a home-opening win for a fourth-straight season.
- Head coach Shawn Nadelen would improve to 5-1 in home openers.

All-Time Versus the No. 12 Team
Since the program elevated to the Division I level for the 1980 season, Towson has lined up across from the team ranked 12th in the USILA Coaches' Poll seven times. The Tigers are 2-5 against the No. 12 team, and will face the Greyhounds ranked in that spot for the first time in program history. Towson's last win over the No. 12 team vame on April 1, 2008, a 9-6 setback against UMBC. Towson's last win over the No. 12 team came on May 12, 2001 as the Tigers knocked off Duke 12-10 in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. The Tigers are looking for their first home versus No. 12 since April 23, 1983 in a 9-8 league win over Hofstra.

Ranked on Ranked
Since taking over the program for the 2012 season, head coach Shawn Nadelen has guided the Towson team back into national standing. Since his rookie season at the helm, Towson has played in 11 games in which both squads are ranked. The Tigers are 4-7 in such games entering Wednesday night, including 3-2 last season with victories over #17 Georgetown, #5 Loyola and #2 Denver.

The Century Mark
Senior attackman Joe Seider is just three goals shy of hitting the 100-career goal mark. The Hereford High School product has 97 goals to his credit and is looking to become the eighth player in program history to surpass the 100-goal plateau. He currently ranks seventh, surpassing program legend Bob Griebe (96) last weekend at Georgetown. Glenn Smith holds the program's career mark at 154 goals from 1988-1991.

Familiarity Breeds Contempt and Respect
Wednesday's game is the 60th meeting all-time between the Tigers and Loyola. The rivalry dates back to the Tigers first season as a varsity program in 1959 and has been contested at least once in every year except for the 1980 campaign. It is the longest running series in program history, surpassing even longtime conference rivals Delaware (57) and Drexel (51).

No Place Like Home
Since taking over the program for the 2012 season, head coach Shawn Nadelen and the Tigers love playing at the friendly confines of Johnny Unitas Stadium. The Tigers are 29-13 all-time at Minnegan Field, including a program-record 11-1 last season. The Tigers have never suffered a losing mark at home under Nadelen, logging three 4-3 seasons (2015, 2013, 2012) at home. During the 2014 campaign, the Tigers finished with a 6-3 mark at home.

Under the Lights
While afternoon games are the preferred start time for the Tigers, Towson is not adverse to playing under the lights. The Tigers will host two night games this season, Wednesday versus Loyola and then on March 14 against Ohio State, beginning at 7 p.m. at Unitas Stadium. The Tigers have won four-straight night games dating back to the 2015 season.

Facing Off
In the early goings of 2017, the Tigers have revamped their personnel at the faceoff X, with two transfers, Alex Woodall and Connor Harryman joining Alec Burckley and Steven Stillwell from years past in the faceoff corps. Freshman Jack McNallen is also learning the trade at Towson with head coach Shawn Nadelen working closely with the important unit. So far in 2017, the Tigers have dominated at the X, winning just shy of 80 percent of the draws. Woodall has the top percentage in Division I entering Wednesday, winning 80 percent of his chances, including 19 of 27 at Georgetown. His 19 wins helped him collect CAA Player of the Week honors, while resetting the program mark under Nadelen. The previous best was 17, set by Ian Mills against Delaware in the coach's rookie campaign of 2012. Oddly enough, winning 79.2 percent of his draws against the Hoyas actually hurt his winning percentage after he went 13 of 16 (81.3 percent) in the season opener at Mount St. Mary's.

Dodging the Midfield: Probably Don't.
It's long been known that the Tigers have some of the best defensive midfielders in the country. The top trio of Jack Adams, a third team USILA All-American last season, and Zach Goodrich, an athletic sophomore, make up the shortstick portion of the d-mids. Senior LSM Tyler Mayes is perhaps underrated at that position. So far, only one starting midfielder has managed to find the twine against Towson's midfielders: Mount St. Mary's Bubba Johnson, who scored in the final minute of the Tigers' 13-5 win to open the season. Johnson, teammate Brendan Doyle and Georgetown's Eduardo White are the only middies to score against Towson this season, combining for three goals.

Towson's top three defensive midfielders, who are capable of scoring as well (Goodrich had two strikes against Georgetown), have combined for nine opponent turnovers. Mayes is tied for the team lead with five, while Goodrich is close behind with four. Adams made his first appearance of 2017 against Georgetown after missing the Mount St. Mary's game with a lower body injury.

Facing Off Part Deux
In just two games this season, the Tigers have won 34 faceoffs in 43 opportunities. It took until nearly half time of the Tigers' fourth game last season to win 34 draws, coming at the 3:24 mark of the second quarter at No. 5 Loyola.

Shutting the Door
In a game where goals can come easily, the Tigers have learned how to close out tight games over the last six seasons. Including Saturday's game at Georgetown, Towson has played 23 one-goal games. Under head coach Shawn Nadelen, Towson is 18-5 in one-goal affairs, including a perfect 4-0 over the last two seasons. The Tigers have won five-straight one-goal games. Towson has prevented most of those games from reaching sudden death, with just six games needing extra time (3-3). Towson is 15-2 in one-goal games in regulation.

Lid Lifters
Since taking over the program prior to the 2012 season, head coach Shawn Nadelen is 5-1 in season openers, including victories in each of the last three seasons. Since elevating to Division I prior to the 1980 season, Towson is 18-19 in season openers. All-time since the program's first game, a 7-4 win over the Brown Lacrosse Club in 1959, Towson is 27-31 in the first game of the season.

Crabcakes and Lacrosse
Maryland has long been known as a hotbed for lacrosse talent. With 26 current players from the Old Line State, Towson is certainly reaping the benefits of that. Heading into Wednesday's game against No. 12 Loyola, head coach Shawn Nadelen is 34-19 all-time when playing games within Maryland. This season, the Tigers will play eight games in Maryland, including six at Johnny Unitas Stadium. Saturday and March 4 will be the only two games in Maryland in which Towson will not be the home team. Nadelen has a sub-.500 record in a just one season when playing in Maryland, winning four of the nine games in 2012.

50 Nifty
Last season in the CAA Semifinals, head coach Shawn Nadelen picked up the 50th win of his Towson career, eliminating Drexel with a 10-6 win at Unitas Stadium. He became the third coach in program history to hit the 50-win plateau, and became the fastest of the three to gain 50 Division I victories. That game was his 81st contest at the helm. Former head coaches Tony Seaman and Carl Runk needed 88 and 89 games, respectively, to grab 50 Division I wins. However, legendary head coach Carl Runk is the fastest Towson coach to 50 total wins, hitting the mark in 1972 in just 69 total games in the Tigers' Division II Era.

No Oil Changes
During the 2017 regular season, the Tigers won't even need to change the oil on the bus, logging just an estimated 1,093 hours spread over 12 games. In the nonconference season, the Tigers will roll just 278 miles between Mount St. Mary's, Georgetown and UMBC.

Lax Sports Network
This season, the CAA office and the Lax Sports Network signed the Network's first-ever conference deal, picking up a total of 15 games for the CAA Game of the Week. LSN will broadcast 10 men's games and five women's games for the package, which features at least one CAA member. The Tiger men's team will be featured three times as the CAA Game of the Week: March 14 vs. Ohio State, March 25 vs. Denver and April 29 vs. Hofstra. Additional games may be added to the LSN broadcast schedule at a later date.

Challenging Schedule
The adage goes that to be the best, you have to beat the best. This season, the Tigers continue to have a challenging nonconference schedule, with four teams currently ranked in the Feb. 13 USILA Coaches' Poll Top 20. All four of those opponents, No. 12 Loyola, No. 3 Johns Hopkins, No. 20 Ohio State and No. 1 Denver will make the trek to Johnny Unitas Stadium this season.

Tigers Favored in the Preseason
After a highly successful 2016, the lacrosse pundits agree on one thing: The Tigers are the team to beat in the CAA this season. In a preseason poll of the league's head coaches, Towson was the league favorite, garnering 25 points and five of the six first place votes (coaches cannot vote for their own team). Fairfield was second with 21 points and the final first place vote. Hofstra and Drexel had 15 and 11 points, respectively, rounding out the potential field for the CAA Tournament.

Preseason All-America Looks
Three Tigers earned mention in the Inside Lacrosse Preseason All-America conversation, with senior defensive midfielder Jack Adams picking up second team honors. Classmates and fellow Marylanders Ryan Drenner and Joe Seider, both attackmen, earned honorable mention.

Anyone, Anytime, Anywhere
Since taking over the program in 2012, head coach Shawn Nadelen has not shied away from the "anyone, anytime, anywhere" mentality. Under his direction, Towson has won 22 true road games in that time, including a combined 12 in the last two seasons. Nadelen's teams have finished at .500 or better on the road in three of his five seasons at the helm: 5-1 in 2016, 6-3 in 2015 and 5-5 in 2013. Towson is 2-0 in road games so far in 2017. In each of those seasons, the Tigers have won the CAA Tournament and earned a berth in the NCAA Tournament via the league's automatic bid.

Stay East, Young Man
After three trips to the Midwest and beyond last season, two to Columbus, Ohio and one to Denver, Colorado, the Tigers will keep things on the East Coast this regular season. Saturday's game will be the farthest west Towson travels between now and the NCAA Tournament. Second-furthest west: Georgetown on Feb. 25.

Familiar Faces
If the 2017 schedule looks similar to the 2016 edition, it's for one simple reason: All 12 teams on this year's slate are teams the Tigers played at least once last season. With the exception of Denver (March 25), Towson played every 2017 opponent during the 2016 regular season, while also drawing Drexel, Fairfield and Loyola in the postseason.

2017 Captains
This season, the Towson men's lacrosse coaching staff, in conjunction with the student-athletes, named four captains.

Redshirt senior midfielder Brian Bolewicki is a captain for a second-straight season. He is the fourth two-time captain in the Shawn Nadelen Era, joining Thomas DeNapoli (2013, 2014), Greg Cuccinello (2014, 2015) and Ben McCarty (2015, 2016). Seniors shortstick defensive midfielder Jack Adams and attackman Ryan Drenner are captains for the first time in their career. Sophomore defensive midfielder Zach Goodrich was named this year as well, becoming the first sophomore captain in the Nadelen Era.

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 33-5 in games when Towson scores double digits. When Towson's defense limits opponents to single digits, the Tigers are a whopping 48-8 in that same time, including last season's 10-9 win over No. 2 Denver in the NCAA First Round Game. On 30 occasions, the Tigers have scored in double figures while holding opponents to single digits, obviously a 30-0 record.