Opening Faceoff
It's a neutral-site showdown between the Towson Tigers and the No. 12/No. 14 Duke Blue Devils as the teams round out the Capitol Classic Lacrosse Tournament at Audi Field. Saturday's tilt will be game three of the day at the home of the D.C. United.
In The National Rankings
Towson did not receive votes in the polls this week. Duke was ranked 12th in this week's USILA Coaches' Poll and 14th in the Inside Lacrosse Media Poll.
The Stayin' on the Road Tigers
It's another week and another game away from home for the Tigers as Towson continues a four-game road swing against Duke. Towson is 3-4 overall, falling in its last contest at Saint Joseph's last Friday.
Three Tigers are north of 20 points, paced by a balanced 28 from James Avanzato (14g, 14a). Finisher Nick DeMaio (19g, 2a) leads Towson's goal efforts while Kyle Berkeley's 20 points are a fairly balanced 12 goals and eight assist from the midfield.
Koby Smith (11ct) and Reagan McNemar (8ct) lead Towson's close defense with a combined 19 caused turnovers. Reece Potter (7ct) has been Towson's top defensive midfielder.
Evan Long made his first career start in cage for the Tigers in Philly last week. He made 14 saves against Saint Joseph's, playing all 60 minutes.
Matt Constantinides (43-106-.406) and Shane Santora (31-73-.425) have traded starting duties at the X for Towson this season.
Scouting the No. 12 Blue Devils
Duke brings a 7-3 overall record to the nation's capital, falling last weekend in Baltimore at Loyola by a 12-10 count at Ridley Athletic Complex.
Duke's potent offense is paced with four players with 30-plus points: Dyson Williams (27g, 8a), Brennan O'Neill (26g, 7a), Sean Lulley (18g, 13a) and Nakeie Montgomery (19g, 11a). O'Neill leads the power play with five goals, tied with EMO specialist Cameron Mulé, who also has five goals, all on the power play.
Mike Adler has been the go-to in net for Duke, making 126 saves at a .543 clip. He carries a 11.31 goals against average into the weekend alongside a 7-3 record.
Towson-Duke History
Saturday's showdown at Audi Field will be the 13th meeting all-time between Towson and Duke, a series that launched May 6, 1966. The Tigers lead the series 7-5, winning six of the first seven meetings. Duke has won the last four duels, including a 19-7 decision last spring. This will be the first neutral site meeting between the teams since Towson's 12-10 NCAA Tournament First Round win over the Blue Devils at UMBC Stadium across town. That is Towson's long win in the program's Division I Era (Since 1980).
Towson-Duke By the Numbers
All-Time Series Record Towson Leads 7-5
at Towson Towson 5-2
at Duke Duke 3-1
at Neutral Sites Towson 1-0
at Unknown Sites n/a
First Meeting May 6, 1966
Towson 14, Duke 7
Last Meeting February 20, 2021
#1 Duke 19, Towson 7
Streak Duke +4
Last Time Out vs. Duke | February 20, 2021 | Towson, Md. | Johnny Unitas ® Stadium
Top-ranked Duke used two shut-down quarters to stymie the home-standing Tigers, out-scoring Towson 11-2 in the first half. James Avanzato (2g, 1a) and Andrew Milani (2g) led the Tiger scoring efforts. Nine different Tigers registered a point in the clash. Duke was led by six points from Michael Sowers (2g, 4a) while Brennan O'Neill deposited four goals. Jake Nasso won 21 of his 25 draws for the Blue Devils. Shane Brennan made a baker's dozen of saves for the Tigers while three different netminders stood in for Duke.
With a Win Saturday Towson Would...
- Snap a four-game slide to the Blue Devils, dating back to a 12-10 NCAA Tournament First Round win during the 2001 season.
- See the Tigers win their first neutral-site regular season game since topping Jacksonville 15-13 on March 8 in Charlotte, North Carolina.
- Be Towson's first neutral site win since claiming the 2019 CAA Championship with a 16-14 win over Drexel in Amherst, Massachusetts.
- Be Towson's first win in Washington, D.C. since beating Georgetown 14-8 on Feb. 23, 2019.
- Be the 93rd career win for head coach Shawn Nadelen.
Capitol Lacrosse Classic
- Announced in February, Towson and Duke will play at 6 p.m. at the Capitol Lacrosse Classic.
- The Tigers and Blue Devils meet at Audi Field in Washington, D.C. as part of a triple-header day.
- Towson's game will be the third of the afternoon, leading off with Hampden-Sydney and Catholic University, followed by a rematch of last season's NCAA Championship game between No. 1 Maryland and No. 2 Virginia.
- Towson and Duke will meet neutral site for the first time since the first round of the 2001 NCAA Division I Men's Lacrosse Tournament, a 12-10 Towson win at UMBC Stadium.
It's a Record
- In the Tigers' outing at Saint Joseph's on March 11, Towson set an NCAA record for fastest goals scored by the same team.
- First Jonathan Bender scored on a crease dunk pass from Chop Gallagher. Bender drew a dead-ball penalty with 2.9 seconds to play in the fourth quarter.
- With no faceoff following the Bender goal, James Avanzato picked the ball up at the whistle, stepping in a scored from 40 yards out, closer to midfield than the restraining box.
- Avanzato's goal stopped the clock with 0.7 seconds on the board.
- All told, just 2.2 seconds of game time passed between goals.
- The previous NCAA mark was three seconds, held by several team/mates.
Climbing the Coaching Charts
- Towson head coach Shawn Nadelen is now in his 11th season at the helm after being elevated to that position for the 2012 season.
- To date, Nadelen has posted 92 career wins and is nearing the century mark.
- Nadelen is third on Towson's all-time wins list: Carl Runk (262), Tony Seaman (99).
Shorty's Like a Melody
- With 9:37 to play in the first quarter against No. 16 Johns Hopkins, Nick DeMaio scored the Tigers' first short-handed goal since the 2015 season.
- Defenseman Koby Smith had the assist on the play.
- It was the first short-handed goal since Dan Carder scored a shorty at Navy in a double-overtime loss in Annapolis.
- That goal came on March 3, 2015, less than a month after longstick midfielder Pat Conroy also scored a shorty against Loyola.
- It had been 100 games since the Tigers scored a short-handed goal.
- DeMaio is the first offensive player in the Shawn Nadelen Era to score a short
Short-Handed Goal Scorers in Shawn Nadelen Era
- Nick DeMaio vs. No. 16 Johns Hopkins - 1st - 9:37 - Assist: Koby Smith
- Dan Carder at Navy - 3rd - 11:45 - Unassisted
- Pat Conroy vs. No. 8 Loyola - 4th - 0:17 - Assist: Joe Seider
The Gauntlet
- Stop us if you've heard this before, but Towson has one of the toughest schedules in DI.
- Towson will face 10 opponents listed in the Week Six USILA/Dynamic Coaches Poll.
- No. 2 Virginia (L, 9-18), No. 12 Duke (March 19), No. 18 Johns Hopkins (L, 12-18), No. 20 Delaware (April 16), rv Loyola (W, 11-8), rv Richmond (L, 15-16 3OT), rv Saint Joseph's (L, 8-11), rv Denver (March 26), rv Hofstra (April 30), rv UMass (April 9)
- Four of first five foes on tap this spring were all mentioned in the poll: No. 13 Johns Hopkins, No. 2 Virginia, rv Richmond and No. 20 Loyola.
- Towson faced three of the first four at home before a quick trip to Cold Spring Lane on March 2.
Transfer Station
- Towson bolstered its roster this off-season with a number of transfer.
- Offensively, the Tigers added Nick DeMaio (Maryland), Kyle Berkeley (Maryland), Luke Shilling (Johns Hopkins) and Sam Weisshaar (Anne Arundel Community College). On defense, Peyton Winters (Harford Community College) adds depth to a veteran backline.
- Those five transfers join a pair of established Transfer Tigers: James Avanzato (Maryland) and Austin Stewart (Denver).
The Top Third
- Towson University head coach Shawn Nadelen is in his 11th season at the helm of the program.
- Hired as the top man following the 2011 season, Nadelen is the 24th-longest tenured Division I head men's lacrosse in the country.
- Nadelen was one of four head coaches elevated during the 2011 offseason: Brian Brecht (Rutgers), Keegan Wilkinson (Marist) and Taylor Wray (Saint Joseph's).
Greater Baltimore is Lovely this Time of Year
- Hope you like the view from Johnny Unitas ® Stadium.
- The Tigers will be at home for the first four games of the 2022 season.
- Towson did not leave The U until a March 2 trip all the way over to Loyola University Maryland (a whopping four miles).
- The Tigers did leave the state of Maryland until a March 11 trip to Saint Joseph's.
- Towson's longest trip of the regular season is a jaunt to Denver on March 26.
- Towson's Feb. 26 game against Richmond was the sixth-straight home game for the Tigers, dating back to the 2021 season. Towson went 1-5 in that span.
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 four times as the CAA Game of the Week: Feb. 11 vs. Johns Hopkins, Feb. 19 vs. Virginia, April 23 at Fairfield, April 30 vs. Hofstra.
The North Americans
Towson has representation from 17 different states and one Canadian province: Maryland (21), New York (5), New Jersey (3), California (2), Florida (2), North Carolina (2), Pennsylvania (2), Virginia (2), Connecticut (1), Colorado (1), Georgia (1), Kentucky (1), Michigan (1), Ohio (1), Oregon (1), Texas (1), Washington (1), British Columbia, Canada (1).
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 70 total wins in the CAA, five 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 11 times, bringing home the trophy on a league-record eight occasions.
Team: Wins (CAA Titles, Last)
Towson: 70 (8, 2019) | Hofstra: 65 (2, 2008) | Drexel: 56 (2, 2021) | Delaware: 44 (3, 2011)
UMass: 33 (2, 2012, 2018) | Fairfield: 11 (0)
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, Garrett Zungailia 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.
Previous CB30 Award Winners
2019 - Zach Goodrich
2020 - Koby Smith
2021 - Carson Gaeger
Wearing the C
This season, head coach Shawn Nadelen and his staff announced five student-athletes that will serve as captains for the 2022 season.
This year's captains are: Shane Brennan, Brandon Hund, Koby Smith, Ryan Swain and Garrett Zungailia.
Brennan, Hund, Smith and Swain will wear captains' Cs on their jerseys while Zungailia will have the CB30 badge in lieu of the captain's letter.
Home Cooking
Johnny Unitas ® Stadium is a tough place to play for visiting opponents. Since head coach Shawn Nadelen took over the program in 2012, Towson and Hofstra are tied for the league lead with 48.
Team: Home Record Since 2012 (as of March 17, 2022)
Towson: 48-29 | Hofstra: 48-33 | UMass: 45-26
Drexel: 42-20 | Fairfield: 39-32 | Delaware: 36-33
Near. Far. Wherever You Are.
Playing for the home crowd is always a pleasure for any team. But the Tigers have had success on the road in the Shawn Nadelen Era as well. Since taking over the program in 2012, the Tigers have racked a 36-32 (.530) record in road games.
How Big is a Tiger?
- Not only has the roster size gotten larger this year, but the student-athletes that comprise have gotten bigger as well.
- Since Shawn Nadelen took over the program in 2012, the Tigers have gotten bigger and heavier.
- As researched by former Media Relations Interns Zoë Winslow and Ashley Cottrell, below are the average heights (in inches) and weights (in pounds) for the last 11 Towson University men's lacrosse teams.
2012: 71.2 / 182.3
2013: 71.4 / 182.3
2014: 71.5 / 182.7
2015: 71.5 / 184.2
2016: 71.4 / 183.9
2017: 72.0 / 187.9
2018: 72.0 / 187.2
2019: 72.4 / 190.3
2020: 72.2 / 187.7
2021: 71.89 / 185.1
2022: 72.1 / 184.3
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 59-8 in games when Towson scores double digits.
- When Towson's defense limits opponents to single digits, the Tigers are a whopping 77-12 in that same time after topping rv Loyola 11-8 at Ridley on March 2.
- On 49 occasions, the Tigers have scored in double figures while holding opponents to single digits, obviously a 49-0 record.
