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Matt Constantinides Wins a Faceoff at Fairfield
Pat Stewart
12
Winner Towson TOWSON 6-7, 3-1 CAA
8
Fairfield FFD 7-6, 2-2 CAA
Winner
Towson TOWSON
6-7, 3-1 CAA
12
Final
8
Fairfield FFD
7-6, 2-2 CAA
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 F
Towson TOWSON 7 2 2 1 12
Fairfield FFD 4 2 1 1 8

Game Recap: Men's Lacrosse | | John Stark

Men’s Lacrosse Secures CAA Berth with Road Win

FAIRFIELD, Conn. – A high-flying start and a gritty, physical finish paced the Towson University men's lacrosse team to a 12-8 win on the road, securing a berth in the 2022 CAA Men's Lacrosse Championship Tournament.

The Tigers (6-7, 3-1 CAA) held Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) foe Fairfield University to just two goals in the second half as Towson regained the top spot in the league standings.

Towson saw nine different players deposit goals, led by three-point, two-goal, one-assist efforts from both James Avanzato and Luke Shilling. Shane Brennan made 15 saves in net for the Tigers while Matt Constantinides won 13 of his 23 faceoffs alongside eight ground balls.

Fairfield (7-6, 2-2 CAA) had the game's top goal-getter in Jack McKenna, who scored five times on nine shots. Bryce Ford had two assists in the game, the only player with two helpers. Netminder James Corasaniti stopped 13 of Towson's 25 shots on goal.

How it Happened
  • Towson got the offense going quickly as Berkeley canned the first of the day just 44 seconds in. Fairfield tied things at 1-1 45 seconds later on Kyle Borda's strike.
  • Shilling put the Tigers back on top with 9:50 to go, getting a feed from linemate Avanzato. Fairfield took a one-goal, 3-2 lead on back to back goals from McKenna and Strough. That lead was short lived as Towson hit for three in a row, bookended by tallies from Stewart , bracing a Koby Smith strike. McKenna made it a one-goal game again at 5-4 Towson, but Avanzato and Shilling scored back-to-back at 1:59 and 1:29 of the first to give the Tigers a 7-4 lead after 15 minutes.
  • The host Stags scored the first two goals of the second quarter from McKenna's hat trick with a power-play goal and Max Paparozzi just 30 seconds apart three minutes into the fresh period. Towson regained a three-goal lead as Webber hit a jump shot from 10 yards out with 11:49 to play. Nick DeMaio broke a scoring slump with 6:51 to go in the second quarter, his first marker since the 13:25 mark of the second quarter against UMass on April 9.
  • That was the final goal of the first half as the Tigers took a 9-6 advantage into the halftime break.
  • Towson opened the scoring the second half as Alex Reid got a feed from DeMaio as the Tigers forced the Stags defense into a rotation, setting Reid up for a wide open look at the net for a 10-6 Tiger lead.
  • Towson extended the lead to five goals at 11-6 as Avanzato, one of the top man-up threats in the country, scoring on the power play, getting another feed from Shilling. 
  • With two minutes left in the third quarter, Fairfield ended a scoreless drought that counted back to 12:26 of the second quarter as McKenna notched his fourth of the day on a Ford feed. Towson held an 11-7 lead after 45 minutes.
  • McKenna scored first in the final frame of regulation with 12:40 left, cutting Towson's lead down to 11-8.
  • The Tigers iced the game with 78 seconds left as Chop Gallagher took advantage of Fairfield's pressure with an empty net, finalizing the game with a 12-8 decision.
Behind the Numbers
  • Avanzato and Shilling had three points apiece with two goals and one assist each. DeMaio contributed twice with a goal and one assist. Stewart added a pair of goals as well. 
  • Defensive midfielder Reece Potter grabbed four ground balls and caused one turnover. Towson's defense was stout, holding a Stags offense that averaged a league-best 14.42 goals per game to just half that number. Towson caused 11 Fairfield miscues, including four from longstick midfielder Colby Barsz, tying a career-best.
  • Brennan made another 15 saves in goal, a 65.2 save percentage against 37 total Stag shots. Brennan has made no fewer than 13 saves in a league game this season.
  • Constantinides, who hails from New Fairfield, Connecticut, won 13 of his 23 faceoffs with another eight ground balls. Towson won five of the seven draws in the second half. Fairfield won eight of the first 12 faceoffs, but Towson's unit held Fairfield to just one faceoff win per quarter the rest of the way.
  • Towson out-shot the Stags 42-37, putting 25 chances on goal. Towson scored on seven of its first eight shots on goal in the game.
  • The Tigers secured a berth in the CAA Tournament, returning to the league postseason after missing last season, Towson's first fully-completed season without a postseason berth since 2011.
  • Assistant coach Matt Musci served as the acting head coach on Saturday. Head coach Shawn Nadelen did not travel with the team due to COVID protocol.
Up Next for Towson
  • The Tigers round out the 2022 regular season on Saturday, April 30 with a showdown against longtime rival Hofstra.
  • Game time is set for noon at Johnny Unitas ® Stadium.
  • Program alumni will be honored throughout the game, which will be carried live and free on Lax Sports Network.
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