Opening Faceoff
February is done and dusted as Towson men's lacrosse looks to move on from a tough start and begin March anew. Towson returns on a promise to renew a series with cross-county foe UMBC after a one-year hiatus, affording the Tigers the chance to play in last season's Crown Lacrosse Event in Charlotte.
Parking Note:
Parking will not be available in the UMBC Stadium Lot, due to the men's basketball home game that evening. Fans are encouraged to park at the Commons Garage or parking lots off Commons Drive and Park Road.
In The National Rankings
Neither side is mentioned in either of the major polls this week.
The First-of-Two-Games This Week Tigers
Towson opens a two-game week across Baltimore County with a showdown against long-time foe UMBC. Towson is looking to bounce back from a 15-6 loss last Wednesday at No. 12 Loyola. Senior attackman Brody McLean (6g, 3a) leads the Tigers' scoring, followed closely by senior linemate Jon Mazza (7g, 1a). Junior midfielder James Avanzato (6g, 2a) leads Towson's first line while sophomore Austin Stewart (1g, 6a) is the top feeder for the Black & Gold. Junior attackman Luke Fromert (4g, 1a) is contibuting to the starting lineup as well. The Tigers suffered two blows to their defensive corps leading into last week's game; junior Koby Smith was unavailable for the game with a lower body injury while Gray Bodden was lost for 4-6 weeks with a lower body injury. Senior defenseman Saunders Healy and freshman Regan McNemar made their first career starts on Wednesday. Sophomore Garrett Zungailia leads the Tigers with six caused turnovers and eight ground balls. Towson has split time in net between Tyler Canto, who started the first two games, and Shane Brennan, who has started the last two games. Brennan has made 29 saves in his games while making stops at a 47.5 percent rate.
Scouting the Crosstown Retrievers
UMBC has won its last two games, topping Sacred Heart at home on Saturday, besting the Pioneers 13-6. Trevor Patschorke (3g, 6a) leads the Retrievers with nine points while Ryan Frawley (6g, 2a) is the top goal getter. UMBC's third attackman, Steven Zichelli (3g, 2a) leads an attack-heavy offense. Defenseman Colin Kasner paces UMBC with 10 caused turnovers and 14 ground balls. Freshman Alex Poma is tied for the team lead with 14 ground balls and is the Retrivers go-to faceoff man, winning 27 of his 49 chances at the X. In net, Tommy Lingner has played all 180 minutes for UMBC this season, making 46 saves in that stretch with a goals against average of 8.00. He carries a 65.7 save percentage so far in 2020.
Towson-UMBC History
With 20 miles between the pair of Black & Gold opponents, this series dates back to April 11, 1970. The Tigers lead the all-time series, aided by a seven-game winning streak. After a one-year hiatus, the series returns. The last season the two sides did not meet was the 1986 campaign. The Tigers have scored 606 goals all-time against UMBC, averaging 12.37 goals per game against the Retrievers. Towson holds a 15-9 all-time mark on the road against UMBC, winning the last three showdowns across town. The Tigers won the last meeting 8-6 on March 3, 2018.
Towson-UMBC By the Numbers
All-Time Series Record Towson 34-15
at Towson Towson 18-6
at UMBC Towson 15-9
at Neutral Sites Towson 1-0
at Unknown Sites n/a
First Meeting April 11, 1970 (Towson 10-7)
Last Meeting March 3, 2018
Towson 8, UMBC 6
Streak Towson +7
Last Time Out vs. UMBC | March 3, 2018 | Towson, Md. | Johnny Unitas ® Stadium
Current senior attackman Jon Mazza accounted for points on seven of Towson's eight goals with five markers and two assists, pacing Towson to an 8-6 win at Unitas Stadium. Jake McLean, Timmy Monahan and Grant Maloof all added goals for Towson, which won 15 of the 18 faceoffs. Shane Brennan made five saves in the win. Trevor Patschorke scored a hat trick while Jack Andrews added two assists. Tommy Lingner made seven saves in the game.
With a Win Tuesday Towson Would...
- Pick up its first win of the 2020 season.
- Snap a five-game slide dating back to last season.
- Extend its winning streak over the Retrievers to eight, remaining the second-longest winning streak in series history.
- Be the first time Towson wins at UMBC in an even year since an 8-7 win on April 5, 2006.
- Be the Tigers fourth-straight win over UMBC on the road in an even year (1972, 2002, 2006).
Discipline
- Despite playing a lot of defense this spring, Towson is one of the most disciplined teams in the country.
- Per LacrosseReference.com, Towson has a time of possession at 24:42 per game, ranking 69th in the country.
- But the Tigers have committed just eight penalties this year, including only one against Cornell on Friday, Feb. 21
- Towson is tied for 19th nationally in fewest opponent man-up chances. The Tigers are tied with seven other schools with 12.
Eyes On
Junior defenseman and USILA All-American Koby Smith was one of 50 men's lacrosse players named to the 2020 Tewaaraton Trophy Watch list on Thursday, Feb. 13. Smith was added to the Watch List in March last season as well. Now in his ninth season at the helm of the program, head coach Shawn Nadelen has had at least one player named to the first round of the Tewaaraton Watch List in every season: Koby Smith (2020), Zach Goodrich, Alex Woodall (2019), Goodrich (2018), Jack Adams, Ryan Drenner (2017), Tyler White (2016), Andrew Hodgson (2015), Thomas DeNapoli (2014), DeNapoli, Andrew Wascavage (2013) and Peter Mezzanotte (2012).
February Stars
Wednesday's game was the 32nd game in the month of February under head coach Shawn Nadelen. The Tigers are 17-15 in the second month of the year since 2012, including 4-4 over the last two seasons.
MARCHing Forward
- February is done and in the books as Towson looks ahead to the third month of 2020.
- Towson is 30-16 all-time in the month of March under head coach Shawn Nadelen
- 2012: 5-1 | 2013: 5-2 | 2014: 5-1 | 2015: 4-2 | 2016: 5-1 | 2017: 2-3 | 2018: 2-3 | 2019: 2-3 | 2020: 0-0
On this Date: March 3
- Towson is 4-1 all-time on March 3
- The Tigers are 1-0 against UMBC on March 3, including the last meeting in 2018.
- Towson is 1-1 in March 3 road games.
- The Tigers are 2-1 under Shawn Nadelen on March 3. The lone loss was a triple overtime defeat at Navy during the 2015 campaign.
Versus: The America East (Current Membership)
UAlbany: 1-0 | Binghamton: 2-1 | Hartford: 4-2 | UMBC: 34-15 | UMass Lowell: 0-0 | Stony Brook: 2-1 | Vermont: 7-0
- Tuesday's tilt will be the 70th meeting for the Tigers all-time against opponents currently aligned with the America East. Towson is 50-19 all-time against the current membership.
- Towson has played UMBC the most, going 34-15 all-time against the Retrievers.
- UMBC is the only member of the America East Towson will see in the regular season.
Greater Baltimore is Lovely this Time of Year
- The Tigers play within 15 miles of homebase for the first month and a half of the season.
- Towson won't play a game outside of Baltimore County/City until heading west to Denver for a March 21 showdown, the Tigers' longest trip of 2020.
Towson Lacrosse x Lax Sports Network
- Towson men's lacrosse and Lax Sports Network will continue to enjoy the partnership the organizations have fostered over the years.
- This spring, Towson will appear on LSN five times as the CAA Game of the Week: Feb. 21 vs. Cornell, March 14 vs. Duke, April 11 at UMass, April 18 vs. Delaware and April 25 vs. Drexel.
The Gauntlet
- As of the fifth week of the 2020, the Tigers are slated to play or have played seven teams ranked in the USILA Coaches' Poll.
- 2020 Opponents Ranked (at time of game): No. 12 Cornell (L, 10-17), No. 17 Denver (March 21), No. 12 Loyola (L, 6-15), No. 12 Duke (March 14), No. 13 Georgetown (March 7), No. 11 Johns Hopkins (L, 7-15) and No. 17 UMass (April 11)
- The most ranked teams Towson has played in a single season was nine during the 2013 season (3-6), followed by eight in 2017 (4-4). Towson played seven ranked in 2019 (3-4) as well.
- Two Towson foes are receiving votes this week: Delaware (April 18) and Drexel (April 25).
CB30 Award
In the summer of 2018, Towson Lacrosse great Carl Beernink passed away. An integral part of the program's rise to dominance in the 1990s, Carl was a leader and inspiration to the program both on and off the field. This season, Koby Smith will wear a CB30 badge in place of his captain's C to honor the late Carl Beernink. This annual award will be given to a Towson player who embodies the fighting spirit of Carl Beernink.
Strength of Schedule
Entering the 2020 season, Towson has one of the toughest schedules in Division I this year. Per Lacrosse Reference, Towson has the second-toughest nonconference strength of schedule in the country, trailing only Feb. 26's opponent, Loyola. Including conference games, Towson has the sixth-toughest schedule for the 2020 campaign. UMass is the next-closest CAA team, ranking 23rd in total strength of schedule.
More Strength
As proof of the previous note, the Tigers will play five teams that have reached their respective conference championship games last season. Title game opponents for Towson include: Drexel (CAA), Denver (BIG EAST), Georgetown (BIG EAST), Johns Hopkins (Big Ten) and UMBC. Additionally, the Tigers scrimmaged Virginia (ACC) in the preseason as the Cavaliers defeated Notre Dame in the title game.
Wearing the C
This season, head coach Shawn Nadelen and his staff announced five student-athletes that will serve as captains for the 2020 season. All five will be first-time captains for the Tigers.
Senior midfielders Grant Maloof, Jake McLean and Jack McNallen, senior close defenseman Gray Bodden and junior defenseman Koby Smith.
Bodden, Maloof, McLean and McNallen will wear captains' Cs on their jerseys while Smith will have the CB30 badge in lieu of the captain's letter.
