HARRISONBURG, Va. – The Towson University women's lacrosse team fell in its Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) opener to No. 12 James Madison, 14-8. 

The teams kept it close through the first half as James Madison led by just two goals after the first 30 minutes. James Madison took over in the second half though, outscoring the Tigers 6-2 to come out with the win.  

Paige Abbott scored the first two goals of her collegiate career in the outing while Gabby Garrett and Halley Koras added two scores apiece. Kerri Thornton and Kerri Liucci also scored in the outing.  

Blair Goodrich had an exceptional day on defense, setting career bests with three ground balls and three caused turnovers.  

Records   

• Towson – 3-6 (0-1 CAA)   
• James Madison – 7-4 (1-0 AAC)   

How it Happened   

• The two teams went back and forth for the first four goals of the game as Thornton and Liucci found the back of the net for the Tigers.  
• With the score tied at 2-2, Abbott and Garrett recrded consecutive goals to give the Tigers a two-score lead. James Madison added a goal before the end of the first to make the score 4-3.  
• Less than two minutes into the second half, the Dukes tied things up once again at 4-all. Koras and Garrett answered with goals to go up, 6-4.  
• JMU went on a four-goal run to end the opening half and take the 8-6 advantage. 
• James Madison continued its run into third quarter, scoring four more goals to stay in control, 12-6. The opposition kept it going with the first two scores of the final quarter to stay ahead, 14-6.  
• Abbott and Koras got the final two goals of the contest for Towson but it was not enough as the Dukes came out on top, 14-8.  

Key Stats 

• Merlo had six saves after playing all 60 minutes in net. 
• Blair Pearre, Goodrich and Olivia Malamphy led the way with three ground balls each for the Tigers. Goorich (3) and Malamphy (2) also led the way in turnovers casued.  
• Lindsay Clarke and Thornton tallied two assists, respectively. Clarke has now recorded helpers in five consecutive games.  
• Towson and James Madison tied 13-13 on draws. Thornton and Pearre grabbed four each to pace the team.  

Inside the Numbers    

• With four draw controls on Wednesday, Pearre sits seventh all-time with 126 career draws. She is now just three behind Nikki Marcinik with 129. 

Next Game   

The Tigers will continue CAA play as they host Elon on Saturday April 2 at 12 p.m., the first of three straight home games at Tiger Field. The team will also celebrate their Alumni Appreciation game.