TOWSON, Md. – The #15/#16 Towson University women's lacrosse used a 5-0 run early in the second half to cut an eight-goal halftime deficit to three, but it was not enough as the Tigers lost to #14/#12 Drexel, 20-8, at Tiger Field Tuesday evening.
 
Trailing 10-2 after 20 minutes, Towson scored five goals, including three by graduate student Abbe Mona, in the first 6:45 of the second half to make it 10-7. However, Drexel answered with its own 6-0 run to build the lead back up.
 
With the win, Drexel improved to 10-1 on the season. The Dragons are 2-0 in the Colonial Athletic Association North Division. Towson falls to 8-3.
 
"We obviously dug ourselves in a pretty big hole in that first half," said Towson head coach Sonia LaMonica. "We had a bright spot in the third quarter, but we lost that momentum. We have to play the full 60 minutes. We have done it before. That is what is going to take to come on top against a team like Drexel."
 
Mona finished with a season-high three goals. Lindsey Marshall (1g, 2a), Kerri Thornton (1g, 2a), Nikki Sliwak (1g, 1a) and Molly Lynch (2a) also had multiple point games.
 
Marshall added a game-high seven draw controls and took over the conference lead with 64 on the season.
 
Karson Harris scored seven goals to lead Drexel and Colleen Grady added five, all in the first half.
 
Records: 

• Towson – 8-3 (0-1 CAA North)
• Drexel  – 10-1 (2-0 CAA North)

How it Happened: 

• Towson took a 1-0 lead less than two minutes into the game when Lynch found Kaitlin Thornton in front of the cage. The senior scored her 84^th career goal. It would be the Tigers only lead of the night.
• Drexel scored eight straight goals before Marshall connected with Shelby Stack. Towson went more than 20 minutes without a score. The score was 10-2 at halftime.
• The second half started with Mona scoring-back-to-back goals. On the first, she took a feed from Marshall and took her time. Two minutes later, Lynch found Mona on the doorstep.
• After causing a turnover, Towson cut into the lead when Sliwak fed a cutting Marshall. Five minutes into the half, it was suddenly a five-goal game.
• Kerri Thornton then had two highlight reel assists in a span of 26 seconds. The first to Sliwak cutting from behind the cage on a free-position play.  Towson controlled the ensuing draw and Thornton hit Mona with a perfect pass. The score was 10-7 with 23:15 to play.
• Drexel regrouped and went on a 6-0 run over the next 10 minutes before Kerri Thornton scored on a great individual effort. The Dragons then scored the last four goals of the game for the final margin.

Key Stats:

• This was Mona's second career hat trick. She scored a career-high seven goals in a win over Ohio State on March 10, 2020.
• The Tigers were 0-for-10 in free position shots. In last weekend's victory over William & Mary, Towson scored nine goals from 8-meters.
• Towson converted 16-of-17 clear attempts. For the season, the Tigers have had successful clears in 209-of-225 attempts (92.9%).

Inside the Numbers: 

• Marshall, who is third on the team in scoring with 31 points (22g, 10a), now has multiple points in nine of 11 games and has controlled at least five draws eight different times.
• Sliwak has scored a goal in all 11 games and ranks second on the scoring list with 33 points (22g, 11a).
• Stack has now scored at least one goal in 28 of the last 33 games, dating back to 2019.

Next Game: 
Towson will face James Madison in a non-conference CAA game on Sunday afternoon in Harrisonburg.  The CAA is using a divisional format this season to reduce travel due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Towson is in the North Division with Hofstra, Drexel and Delaware. James Madison, Elon and William & Mary comprise the South Division. Five teams – the top two in each division plus one at-large selection – will advance to the league tournament hosted by James Madison on May 7 and 9.