Opening Faceoff
Towson returns home to Johnny Unitas Stadium for a Saturday showdown against Georgetown, the ninth meeting all-time between the programs. Both teams enter Saturday's clash coming off of wins, Towson a 15-13 victory over visiting Mount St. Mary's while Georgetown scored a 12-11 win at Robert Morris.

In The National Rankings
Despite last weekend's victory, the Tigers slipped in the national polls, falling to the receiving votes column of the USILA Coaches' Poll. Towson was the top point getter in that poll. The Tigers remain 19th in the Inside Lacrosse Media Poll, garnering 49 points. Georgetown is in the receiving votes portion of both national polls this week as well. This mark the first time since May 2015 the Tigers are unranked entering a game.

The Home-Standing Tigers
Towson plays the second tilt of back-to-back home games, hosting Georgetown. It is the first of two back-to-back home stands for Towson this season, with the second coming at the end of the regular season. Jon Mazza makes the Towson offense go, scoring seven points (4g, 3a), including a five-point effort last weekend against the Mount. Brendan Sunday is second in points with four (4g) after logging the first hat trick of his career against the Mountaineers. Grant Maloof (3g) and Jean-Luc Chetner (2g, 1a) are the only other Tigers with multiple goals. However, 12 Towson players have scored at least one goal this season. At the X, Alex Woodall continues his winning ways, going 37-55 (.673) so far in 2018. Last weekend, he won 21 draws, the most by a Tiger since the end of 2005. Towson has split time in goal, with Shane Brennan starting both games, but finishing with Josh Miller, who has 13 saves.

Scouting the Hoyas
Georgetown enters Saturday's game with a 2-0 mark, topping High Point 15-5 and Robert Morris 12-11. Jake Carraway (9g, 2a) and Daniel Bucaro (6g, 5a) lead the Hoyas with 11 points apiece. Craig Berge is close behind with eight points (3g, 5a) and is tied with Bucaro for the assist lead. Carraway has ripped off 21 shots so far this season, scoring at a 42.9 percent clip. At the X, Peter Tagliaferri is the top man, winning 25 of his 42 draws (.595) and a team-best 15 ground balls. Nick Marrocco has played the bulk of time in goal, logging 111 minutes. He has 21 saves to his credit and carries a 7.57 goals against average. He has seen 60 total shots, with his defense limiting opponents to 38 shots on goal.

Towson-Georgetown History
In a series that dates back to the Tigers' Division II days, Towson meets the Hoyas for the ninth time on Saturday. The Tigers lead the all-time series 7-1 and have won four straight. Towson's lone blemish came during the 2004 NCAA Tournament at Georgetown, a year the Hoyas reached the NCAA Quarterfinals. Saturday's game will be the fifth-straight season the two teams have met, the longest run of contests in series history. The games have been tight since Shawn Nadelen took over at Towson, with the average goal differential sitting at two goals in favor of Towson (38-30).

Towson-Georgetown By the Numbers
All-Time Series Record Towson 7-1
at Towson Towson 2-0
at Georgetown Towson 2-1
at Neutral Sites n/a
at Unknown Sites Towson 3-0
First Meeting April 10, 1963 
Last Meeting Feb. 25, 2017
#12 Towson 11, Georgetown 10
Streak.......................................................Towson +5

Last Time Out vs. Georgetown | Feb. 25, 2017 | Washington, D.C.
Towson used a monster first half to stave off a 5-1 second half by Georgetown to walk out of Washington, D.C. with an 11-10 victory. Joe Seider scored a four-point day (3g, 1a) while Ryan Drenner checked in with six points (2g, 4a). Current Tiger Cole Roberston scored the Tigers lone second-half goal with 6:58 to play in the third, which stood up as the game-winning goal. Despite taking six penalties, Towson allowed just two extra-man goals. Josh Miller made nine saves in his 60 minutes of work. Alex Woodall had a career-day, winning 19 of his 24 faceoffs, including a second quarter where he went 10-for-11. He left the field with 13 ground balls, in addition to a goal.

With a Win Saturday
- The Tigers would improve to 2-1 on the season.
- Towson would win its fifth-straight over the Hoyas, extending the longest winning streak in the series.
- Towson would be unbeaten against its last two opponents in the last 17 tilts against both the Mount and Georgetown.
- Head coach Shawn Nadelen would improve to 5-0 all-time against Georgetown.
- The Tigers would win their sixth-straight home game, dating back to the CAA schedule last season.

Careers Versus Georgetown
Twelve current members of the program have suited up in the Black & Gold against Georgetown. Jon Mazza and Zach Goodrich set the offensive pace with two goals apiece. Mazza has a two-game scoring streak against the Hoyas, notching one goal in each of the last two seasons, while Goodrich potted a pair in transition last season. Faceoff specialist Alex Woodall and midfielder Cole Robertson have one goal each, with the latter getting last season's game-winning strike. Woodall has a career faceoff percentage of 79.2 (19-24) and 13 ground balls, all coming last season. Josh Miller made the start last season at Cooper Field, making nine saves in an 11-10 victory.

On this Date: February 24
With the trend of moving games earlier and earlier in the calendar year, it's little surprise the Tigers have played sparingly on February 24. In the program's Division I history, Saturday's matchup will be just the third-ever game on Feb. 24. The Tigers are 1-1 all-time on this date and 1-0 at home. The first-ever Feb. 24 game was a 2001 game at Virginia, a 12-8 Cavalier win. The only other Feb. 24 contest was a 9-8 overtime win at home against Mercer during 2013. Towson reaches the NCAA Tournament in seasons when it plays on Feb. 24, advancing to Championship Weekend in 2001 and capturing the first CAA Tournament title in the Nadelen Era in 2013.

Dog Days of Spring
Since head coach Shawn Nadelen took over as head coach of the program, the Tigers are 11-6 all-time against opponents that use a dog as a mascot. Towson has three dog foes this year, with the first on Saturday against Georgetown, which uses a bulldog. The Tigers play all three dog foes in a row, heading to Loyola (Greyhounds) on Wednesday, Feb. 28, followed by a home game against UMBC (Retrievers) on Saturday, March 3.

How to Say It: TOWSON
TOWSON is pronounced TOW like towel + Son. 

IT IS NOT: TOE-son, Townson, Towsond, Townsend, Townsen, Towzen. One N, no Z.

We are Towson University, no longer Towson State University (and haven't been since July 1, 1997).

Our mascot is Doc The Tiger, named after Donald "Doc" Minnegan, long-time soccer coach and athletics department administrator. Towson became the "Tigers" in 1962 after John Schuerholz (yes, the Atlanta Braves Hall of Fame General Manager) pushed for the name change from the "Towson College Knights".

Oh Canada
Last weekend, all three of the Canadians on the roster scored. Brody McLean (Ontario) got his first as a Tiger, while Dylan Kinnear (Alberta) got his first of the year. Jean-Luc Chetner (British Columbia) posted his second-straight Towson game with a goal. McLean and Kinnear scored back-to-back extra-man goals during a 7-0 Towson run in the second quarter. Chetner scored what proved to be the game-winner with 8:23 to play in the game.

Woodall's Decent Day
Last weekend, junior faceoff specialist Alex Woodall exploded for a career-best day at the faceoff X. The Annapolis, Maryland native won 21 of his 31 chances, becoming the first Tiger since May 2005 to win 20 faceoffs. His 21 draws were the most by a Towson player in the Shawn Nadelen Era. For his efforts, Woodall was selected as the CAA Player of the Week. 

It was a big weekend for faceoff specialists last week. Entering last Saturday's games, no specialist had won 20 draws. Last week, five managed the feat. Trevor Baptiste (Denver) won 23 against Duke, Collin Orr (Colgate) grabbed 22 against Cornell, Dylan Protesto (Hartford) had a 21-win day against St. John's, while Gerard Arceri (Penn State) collected 20 versus Stony Brook.

Lax Sports Network CAA Game of the Week
This weekend's game will be featured on Lax Sports Network as the CAA Game of the Week. Towson will be the first league team featured for LSN's CAA Game of the Week package. Towson will play the CAA Game of the Week two more times this season, hosting Drexel on April 7 at noon and capping the regular season on April 28 against Fairfield with an 11 a.m. start.

2018 Captains
At the program's annual Face-Off Night, head coach Shawn Nadelen made the announcement of the program's captain trio for the upcoming season: Junior shortstick defensive midfielder Zach Goodrich, a two-time captain, senior midfielder Cole Robertson and senior defensive midfielder Adam Ceribelli.

Conference History
For the first time in CAA history, a midfielder was named CAA Preseason Player of the Year, according to a poll of the league's head coaches. And it was not an offensive midfielder: defensive midfielder Zach Goodrich was selected as the top player in the league. He is just the second non-attackman to be named and second defensive player to earn the honor after former Penn State goalie Austin Kaut was selected.

Youth Movement
Towson will be a young but experienced team this season. At the onset of the 2018 season, there are 21 true freshmen or redshirt freshmen on the roster. That amounts to nearly 40 percent of the roster. Below is a roster breakdown by class

Freshmen: 18 | Redshirt Freshmen: 3
Sophomores: 11 | Redshirt Sophomores: 1
Juniors: 11 | Redshirt Juniors: 2
Seniors: 7 | Redshirt Seniors: 1

No Rest for the Weary
Coming off the success of 2017, the Tigers will take on another challenging schedule in 2018. Of the 20 teams on the USILA Division I Men's Lacrosse Preseason Coaches' Poll, Towson will take on six, including five on the road. Rankings below are based on the Preseason Poll.

Feb. 10 at No. 11 Johns Hopkins | Feb. 28 at No. 13 Loyola | March 10 at No. 8 Ohio State
March 17 vs. No. 2 Duke | March 24 at No. 4 Denver | March 31 at No. 19 Hofstra

In Minto Condition
It was a busy summer for redshirt junior Dylan Kinnear. In addition to the Tigers' run to Championship Weekend and the overseas trip to Ireland, Kinnear suited up in the box for the Okotoks Raiders, Junior A Lacrosse Club.

Kinnear helped lead the Raiders to the Minto Cup Tournament after capturing the Alberta Provence championship. The Calgary native finished his nine games with 25 goals and 20 assists as a transition player.

And Miles to Go Before I Sleep
Through the first month of the 2018 season, Towson will not have very far to travel. In addition to a pair of home games against Mount St. Mary's (Feb. 17) and Georgetown (Feb. 24), the Tigers will make two quick trips down Charles Street. Between Unitas Stadium, Homewood Field and the Ridley Athletic Complex, Towson will cover just 20 miles in February.

And then March hits. 

Towson host two games in March: UMBC on March 3 and Duke on March 17. In between the games is a plane trip to Columbus to take on Ohio State (March 10), followed by a flight to Denver (March 24) and bus ride to Hofstra (March 31). 

Round trip to the three March road games covers over 4,600 miles. On April 14, Towson will head to Amherst, Massachusetts to face UMass, another 712 miles.

The Neighbors to the North
Like the Kent Islanders, Towson's roster has three Canadians: fifth-year Richmond Transfer Jean-Luc Chetner (British Columbia), redshirt junior Dylan Kinnear (Alberta) and Brody McLean (Ontario).

Transfer Tigers
It was a busy offseason for the Towson compliance office as the Tigers welcome six transfers to the program this spring. In addition to four in the previous two seasons, the newest crop of Tigers include transfers Timmy Monahan (Maryland), Luke Fromert (Mercer), Jean-Luc Chetner (Richmond), Brody McLean (Stony Brook), Tyler Canto (UMass Lowell) and Spencer Coyle (Navy).

Previous transfers included Sid Ewell (CCBC Essex), Alex Woodall (High Point), Johnny Giuffreda (Loyola) and Dylan Kinnear (Ohio State). 

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 34-15 all-time at Minnegan Field, including a 1-0 mark this season. In 2016, the Tigers set a program record for home wins, going 11-1 at Unitas Stadium. The Tigers have never suffered a losing mark at home under Nadelen, logging three 4-3 seasons (2012, 2013, 2015) at home. During the 2014 campaign, the Tigers finished with a 6-3 mark at home. 

RIP Long Time Ranked
Last Saturday's game was the 40th-straight game the Towson University men's lacrosse team played as a team ranked inside the USILA Coaches' Poll Top 20. Unfortunately, that streak comes to an end this weekend as the Tigers received votes in the most recent poll. The last time Towson played a game as an unranked team was on May 2, 2015 against UMass in the CAA Championship game; Towson received votes prior to the start of the league tournament. 

The 40-straight games in the USILA Coaches' Poll Top 20 were the longest such streak for the Tigers in the Shawn Nadelen Era (2012) and longest stretch since 41 games between March 10, 2001-March 21, 2004. (Preseason polls did not begin until 2007 (this excludes games played before the first poll of the season came out. Preseason).

Towson was ranked inside the USILA Coaches' Poll Top 20 for 30 consecutive weeks. That is the longest stretch of rankings for the Tigers since earning a spot in the Coaches' Poll for 32 consecutive weeks from March 5, 2001-March 15, 2004. The final USILA Coaches' Poll of the 2017 season was released on Monday, May 8.

Class of the CAA
Since joining the CAA for the 2002 season, no program in league history has enjoyed more success than Towson University. The Tigers have racked up 59 total wins in the CAA, two more than rival Hofstra. Below is a list of the current members of the CAA and their win totals in conference games since joining the league. The Tigers have appeared in the conference title game a total of nine times, bringing home the trophy on a league-record six occasions.

Team: Wins (CAA Titles, Last)
Towson: 59 (6, 2016)
Hofstra: 57 (2, 2008)
Drexel: 49 (1, 2014)
Delaware: 31 (3, 2011)
UMass: 20 (1, 2012)
Fairfield: 9 (0)

Best in Baltimore
Local rivalries are always important. And once again, Towson will honor those rivalries and square off against the three Greater Baltimore schools: Johns Hopkins, Loyola and UMBC. Towson and Johns Hopkins are the only two schools in Greater Baltimore that are scheduled to play the other three this season.

Over the last three regular seasons, Towson has established itself among the best in the Baltimore Area.

Towson: 6-4
Johns Hopkins: 6-4
Loyola: 4-2
UMBC 3-2

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 41-6 in games when Towson scores double digits. When Towson's defense limits opponents to single digits, the Tigers are a whopping 58-8 in that same time, including the 10-7 win over second-seeded Syracuse (May 21). On 37 occasions, the Tigers have scored in double figures while holding opponents to single digits, obviously a 37-0 record.