When                     Thursday, November 17, 2022
Where                    SECU Arena | Towson, Md.
Time                      Saturday: 11 a.m.
Team Records     #1 Towson (26-1, 15-1 CAA)
                               #8 Stony Brook (10-15, 5-11 CAA)
Stream                   FloVolleyball ($)
Series                   Towson Leads Stony Brook 9-0                          
 
First Serve
The Towson University Tigers volleyball team will start its title defense against the #8 seed Stony Brook Seawolves. The Tigers will be looking for their fourth consecutive CAA title and an NCAA Tournament berth.
 
Receiving Votes
This week, the Tigers received 16 votes in this week's AVCA Coaches Poll. If Towson earns enough votes, it will be the first time that the program has been ranked in its 47-year history.

All-CAA Honors
Five Tigers were picked to All-CAA Teams earlier today announced by the CAA. Head Coach Don Metil was voted as the CAA Coach of the Year after leading the Tigers to a 26-1 overall record that included a four-set victory over #7 Pittsburgh. Metil got Towson off to its best-ever start to a season, winning 18 straight matches.

Victoria Barrett was named to the All-CAA First Team after leading Towson in kills (272) and kills per set (2.89) in her first season with the Tigers. Barrett ranks second on the team in service aces and digs with 30 service aces and 190 kills.

Nina Cajic earns her third consecutive All-CAA honor, including her second All-CAA First Team selection at Towson. Cajic ranks 30th in the country in hit percentage and second in the CAA with a .379 hit percentage on 564 total attempts. The junior from Subotica, Serbia finished with a career-best 264 kills and finished second on the squad in kills per set with 2.78.

Lydia Wiers was named to the All-CAA First Team for the second time. The senior from Willard, Ohio, leads the CAA and ranks 37th in the country in blocks per set, averaging 1.26, a career-best. Wiers ranks sixth all-time in career total blocks with 403, trailing Alysha Fanning by 17. She leads the CAA in hit percentage with a .381 percentage on 289 total attempts.

Aayinde Smith was named to Second Team All-CAA after putting career-high in almost every major statistic. The junior from Garland, Texas, totaled 155 kills, averaging 1.53 kills per set. She finished with a .418 hit percentage on 280 total attacks. Smith ranked fourth in the CAA and second on the squad in total blocks with 109. She averaged 1.15 blocks per set to rank fourth in the CAA and second on the team.

Sarah Jordan was named to the All-CAA Rookie Team after leading Towson in assists this season with 521, which ranks seventh in the CAA. Jordan totaled 27 service aces, third-most for Towson. She finished with 154 digs and averaged 1.77 digs per set over 87 sets played.
                                                               
All We Do Is Win
Towson is tied for the most wins in the nation with 26 with #22 Western Kentucky, South Dakota State and Wright State. The Tigers have the highest winning percentage in the country at .963. #2 San Diego trails the Tigers in second with a .960 win percentage.
 
Block by Block
Lydia Wiers currently is sixth all-time at Towson in total blocks with 403 over her four-year career. Wiers is only 17 total blocks behind Alysha Manning for fifth place all-time. The senior from Willard, Ohio is only one of 12 Tigers with 300 or more total blocks.
 
Nationally Recognized
Nina Cajic was named GameChanger/AVCA National Division I Women's VB Player of the Week earlier this month. Cajic had 32 kills, including a then season-high 18 kills on Sunday's win against Stony Brook. She averaged 5.33 kills per set and a .698 hit percentage. In Saturday's match against Stony Brook, Cajic totaled 14 kills on a .737 hit percentage. This is the first time a player from Towson has won this award.
 
Welcome to the CAA
Towson has started CAA play with all three newcomers in the CAA this year; Monmouth does not have a women's volleyball program. The Tigers are 6-0 against the new members, sweeping them in five of the six matches this season.
 
Scouting the Reigning Tigers
Towson picked up where it left off last year and has won 26 matches. The Tigers swept the Pirate Invitational, defeating Norfolk State, East Carolina and Furman. Towson hosted the Tiger Invitational and won all four matches, including a thrilling five-set victory over Rutgers. The Tigers competed in the Panther Challenge and swept Bowling Green and American, then knocked off #7 Pittsburgh.

Towson started CAA play with two sweeps over newcomer Hampton behind strong team performances. The Tigers went up to Long Island and swept Stony Brook twice, including a hard-fought match on Saturday. Towson welcomed North Carolina A&T to SECU and won both matches. Towson swept Delaware in the first match to break the program record for the best start to a season, then swept the Blue Hens on Sunday to remain perfect.

Towson picked up its first loss of the season against Elon after the Tigers' comeback fell short. The Black & Gold responded with a four-set victory against the Phoenix. Towson wrapped up non-conference play with a four-set victory over Chicago State. The Tigers resumed CAA play with two four-set wins against William & Mary. Towson defeated Charleston in four sets on Saturday and swept the Cougars on Sunday. The Tigers swept Hofstra on Saturday to force a winner-take-all match for CAA regular season title. Towson went up two sets, then the Pride stormed back, but the Tigers prevailed in the fifth set to defend the crown.

Victoria Barrett leads Towson in kills (272), kills per set (2.89) and points per set (3.60). Sarah Jordan has made an instant impact, leading the Tigers in assists (509) and assists per set (5.99).
 
Leading the Conference
The Tigers are leading the conference in most statistical categories. Towson leads the CAA in aces per set (1.82), assists per set (13.00), blocks per set (2.83), hitting percentage (.280), kills per set (13.87), opponent hit percentage (.137), team assists (1,235) and total blocks (269).   
 
Fresh Faces
Towson brings in nine new faces this year: Erin Brothers, Trinity Burge (Radford), Sydney Stewart, Victoria Barrett (New Mexico State), Sarah Jordan, Kerra Trimble (Southern Idaho), Amiyah De'Long (Stony Brook), Maya Scott (New Orleans) and Jasmine Purakal.                 
 
Lockdown Defense
Through 26 matches this season, the Tigers are tied for second in the country in opponent hitting percentage (0.137). The Tigers have not allowed a team to have a hitting percentage of .300 or higher this season. Towson is ranked fourth in the NCAA in blocks per set, averaging 2.85. Lydia Wiers currently leads the CAA in blocks per set and total blocks, averaging 1.29 and respectively 112. Aayinde Smith sits fourth in the CAA in total blocks and blocks per set with 109 and having 1.13. Rachel Hess leads Towson in digs with 336 and sits seventh in digs per set in the CAA with 3.61.
 
Electrifying Offense
The Tigers' offense has been phenomenal during the 2022 season. Towson ranks 16th in the nation in hit percentage at .280. The Tigers sit 28th in the nation in kills per set with 13.87 and rank 21st in assists per set at 13.00. Towson is 24th in the country in aces per set, averaging 1.82. Lydia Wiers leads the CAA with a .381 hit percentage while teammate Nina Cajic ranks second in the CAA in hit percentage with a .379. Fay Bakodimou leads the conference in service aces per set, averaging 0.47 and ranking 29th in the NCAA.  
 
Highly Awarded
Lydia Wiers was named CAA Defensive Player of the Week for the third time. Wiers totaled 15 total blocks, averaging 1.88 blocks per ser in Towson's two victories against William & Mary. She had a season-high nine total blocks with eight kills, three digs, then followed with six total blocks, including two solo blocks, eight kills on a .889 hit percentage. Earlier this month, the senior from Willard, Ohio totaled 17 blocks, including a season-high nine blocks on Sunday's match against North Carolina A&T. On Saturday, she had a team-high eight blocks with six kills and a .444 hit percentage. Last month she earned the honor after tallying 14 blocks at the Panther Challenge, averaging 1.40 blocks per set, while the team averaged 3.30 blocks per set over the weekend. Wiers had six blocks against #7 Pittsburgh.

Nina Cajic earned CAA Offensive Player of the Week last week after totaling 31 kills, averaging a .509 hit percentage against Hofstra to help the Tigers clinch the CAA regular season title. Cajic had a career-high 21 kills on Sunday against Hofstra to secure the title-clinching victory. She amassed 32 kills, which included 18 kills against Stony Brook. Cajic had a hit percentage of .698 and had a .737 percentage in Saturday's match. Earlier in the month, she earned the honor by totaling 43 kills, 10 blocks and having a .397 hit percentage over four matches. The junior from Subotica, Serbia had double-digit kills in three of the four matches with only four errors on 99 attempts.

Towson-Stony Brook By the Numbers
All-Time Series Record Towson Leads Stony Brook 9-0
at Towson, Towson Leads 2-0
at Stony Brook, Towson Leads 5-0
at Neutral Sites, Towson Leads 2-0
First Meeting, Oct. 6, 2001 (Towson 3-1)
Last Meeting Sept. 25, 2022
Towson 3, Stony Brook 0
Streak Towson +9

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".

With a Win on Thursday, Towson Would...
- Win its 27th match.
- Extend its winning streak to nine matches.
- Advance to the CAA Semifinals.
- Win its seventh straight CAA Tournament match.

Returning to the Court
-Towson returns nine players from last year's team.
- The Tigers' experience from last year is a combined 594 sets played, including Lydia Wiers, Rachel Hess, and Fay Bakodimou, who totaled 342 sets.
- The 19 current members of the program have played in 1,527 total collegiate sets across their respective careers, entering the season.

Back-to-Back-to-Back Champs
- The Tigers remain the reigning champions of the league, winning its third-straight CAA title.
- Last year Towson swept Delaware and won in five sets against Elon in the CAA Championship.
- Since Towson joined the CAA in 2002, no team has three-peated as champions.
-The only teams to have won three or more titles in a row were William & Mary seven times (1985-1991) and George Mason five times (1992-1996).
- The Tigers hoisted the league trophy after a perfect 4-0 regular season in the spring of 2021, which included a 2-0 mark in league play. Towson put together a 16-0 CAA campaign in 2019, paired with 3-1 win over Elon and a sweep of James Madison in the CAA Tournament.
- There are five Tigers currently on the roster that were members of the historic back-to-back-to-back championship teams: Katie McCracken, Lydia Wiers, Asia Goins, Morgan Wilson and Fay Bakodimou.

League of Their Own
- Over the last seven seasons, Towson has been one of the top teams in the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA). Since the 2015 campaign, the Tigers have registered a 103-26 record in league play, including a record-setting 16-0 mark in 2019.
- The Tigers went 12-4 last year and never got swept. The last time Towson was swept in league play happened against College of Charleston in 2018.
2022: 15-1 | 2021: 12-4 | 2021 (spring): 2-0 | 2019: 16-0 | 2018: 10-6 | 2017: 12-4 | 2016: 10-6 | 2015: 12-4 | Total: 103-26 (.798)

Top of the Charts
- Now in his 21st season as an NCAA volleyball head coach, Coach Don Metil has amassed 448 wins.
- Metil is 448-205 all-time (.686) as a head coach.
- Metil's records by school: Notre Dame College: 40-30 | Lees-McRae: 30-9
Coppin State: 15-46 | Maryland Eastern Shore: 145-45 | Towson: 218-75
- Metil passed Cathy Cain on the all-time wins list after knocking off #7 Pittsburgh earlier this season.
- Don Metil: 218-75 (2013-Pres.) | Cathy Cain: 201-143 (1989-98) | Chris Riley: 144-54 (2000-05)

Protect this House
- Since moving into SECU Arena full-time in 2013, Towson has racked up an impressive 98-24 (.803) overall record at SECU Arena.
- The Tigers have four seasons with double-digit wins, including a 10-3 mark in 2017.
- The Tigers finished 2018 strong at home with a three-match win streak.
- The Tigers finished 2019 with a 12-1 overall mark at SECU Arena, with an 8-0 mark in the CAA.
- Towson went 3-0 in the shortened spring 2021 season.
- The Tigers finished last season with a 17-4 record at SECU Arena.
- Towson has won 19 straight at home since October 3, 2021.

Scouting the Seawolves                                                                                                                          
Stony Brook comes into the CAA Tournament as the #8 seed after reverse sweeping Elon on the final day to qualify for the tournament. Kali Moore is the player to watch for the Seawolves after winning CAA Rookie of the Year earlier today. Moore leads Stony Brook in kills (310) and kills per set (3.10). The freshman ranks second on her squad in digs and digs per set with 253 and averaging 2.64. Torri Henry ranks fourth in the CAA in total assists and assists per set with 839 and averaging 8.74. The Seawolves have the third most service aces per set in the CAA at 1.68.