The Game: #1 Towson Tigers (13-2-2) vs. #5 William & Mary (9-3-7)
When: Sunday, October 29 – 1:00 p.m.
Where: Tiger Field– Towson, Md.
Broadcast: Live stream on FloFC, live stats at TowsonTigers.com
Series: William & Mary leads 13-5-2

TOWSON, Md. – Towson women's soccer will begin their quest toward their first CAA tournament title in program history against the fifth seeded William & Mary Tribe on Sunday afternoon. The Tigers are coming off a 2-0 win against Hofstra to win their first CAA regular season title last Sunday behind goals from Phoebe Canoles and Nia Christopher.

The game will stream on FloFC and live stats will be available at TowsonTigers.com. Admission to all matches at Tiger Field is free of charge.

This will be the 21^st all-time meeting between the two schools with the Tribe holding a 13-5-2 record against the Tigers. Earlier this month the Tigers defeated William & Mary 3-0 in Williamsburg.

TOWSON IN THE CAA CHAMPIONSHIPS:
The Tigers are in the conference tournament for just the third time since joining the league in 2002. The Tigers are 1-2 all-time with their lone win coming last season against Elon with a 2-1 win in the quarterfinals.

TIGER HONORS:
Towson earned four of the six major end of the season awards on October 25. Riley Melendez was named CAA Goalkeeper of the Year for the second consecutive season becoming the first player in CAA history to earn the award in back-to-back seasons. Nia Christopher (Attacker of the Year), Jasmine Hamid (Midfielder of the Year) and Katherine Vettori (Coach of the Year) also won major awards.

In addition to the four major award winners, Phoebe Canoles earned All-CAA First Team honors with Demi Pierre and Maja Hansson being named to the All-CAA Third Team.

HISTORIC 2022 SEASON:
The Tigers are looking to build off a solid 2022 campaign that saw Towson pick up their first CAA Tournament win in program history, falling to eventual conference champion Hofstra in the semifinals.
Towson boasted the top defense in the CAA last year allowing just 0.55 goals against with 11 shutouts.

Towson also boasted their most wins since 2011 and the second most in program history.

HISTORIC 2022 2023 SEASON:
The Tigers continue to have a record-breaking campaign in 2023. Three different Tigers have won weekly CAA awards with Jasmine Hamid and Nia Christopher each earning offensive player of the week honors twice and Riley Melendez being named defensive player of the week once. Hamid and Christopher have also earned national recognition as well.

Christopher has cemented her legacy at Towson this season setting three different program records in goals scored, points and game-winning goals. As a team, the Tigers currently have their most points in a conference season with 23 and set the program mark for assists in a season.

BRICK WALL DEFENSE:
Melendez was a key part of a stalwart defense for the Tigers that allowed just 11 goals all season and seven in conference play. The senior from Virginia was named CAA Goalkeeper of the Year for her efforts that also landed her on the All-CAA First Team.

The Tigers will return all four starting defenders in seniors Sydney Cradle and Maja Hansson, graduate student Jacey Miller and sophomore Reese Borden. Hansson was named All-CAA Second Team in 2022 with Cradle and Borden recording goals from the backline.

RECORD WATCH:
Several Tigers are working their way up the record books with the chance to become the program leader in several career categories. Nia Christopher became the program leader in game-winning goals with 11 after her game winner against La Salle and the all-time goal scorer with 31 goals against Campbell. She broke the points record the very next game against Drexel and is now the only Tiger to record 80 plus points in a career.

Christopher is also fourth in shots with 196. The Bermuda native is behind current teammate Phoebe Canoles in all-time shots, with Canoles recording 204 shots. Jacey Miller has played in 80 career games, setting the program record for games played.

Goalkeeper Riley Melendez is second in career shutouts with 27 and is chasing hall of famer Tina Steck in first with 28. Melendez is also top ten in saves (8^th, 219).

NEWCOMERS:
Towson will have newcomers suit up in the black and gold for the 2023 season, including West Virginia and Maryland transfer Julie Lynch. Lynch played in 16 games with 13 starts last season finishing second on the team in assists (3) and scored one goal from the midfield.

Paelyn Bayer, Maddy Hall, Sophie Thibeault, Payton Todd, Brooke Rienecker and Teagan Gardner will be making their collegiate debuts for the Tigers. Hall, Thibeault and Todd have local ties having played in the Baltimore metro area.

CIERRA'S ON THE CASE!:
Junior Cierra DiSabato had the opportunity to complete an internship with the New Jersey State Police Crime Scene Unit this past summer where she got real world experience. Some of her duties included observing a forensic anthropologist on bone cleanings and reconstruction, as well as joining detectives digging up bones from a cold case in the 90s and visiting a morgue.

COASTAL ATHLETIC ASSOCIATION OUTLOOK:
The Tigers were one of six schools to pick up a first-place vote. In addition, seniors Nia Christopher and Riley Melendez earned Preseason All-Coastal Athletic Association (CAA) honors, as voted on by the coaches.

Monmouth was voted to win the league by the league's head coaches, who were not allowed to vote for their own team. The Hawks picked up six first-place votes and 124 total points, just edging out Northeastern with one first-place vote and 123 points.

Reigning CAA champion Hofstra picked up three first-place votes in third place, just ahead of the Tigers. Drexel, Elon and CAA newcomer Campbell were picked five through seven with the Dragons and Camels earning a first-place vote. William & Mary, UNCW, Stony Brook, Charleston, Delaware and Hampton rounded out the 13-team field.

Christopher and Melendez each picked up preseason All-CAA honors. Both Christopher and Melendez were named All-CAA First Team last season with Melendez being named CAA Goalkeeper of the Year. Classmate Jasmine Hamid was named Honorable Mention All-CAA after finishing third on the team in goals in 2022.

SCOUTING THE OPPONENT:
William & Mary comes into the semifinals at 9-3-7 overall and are coming off a 1-1 draw, advancing 7-6 on penalty kicks against the four seed Northeastern on Thursday night. The Tribe scored a goal in the first half but had to play extra soccer after a late second half Huskies goal. In the shootout, goalkeeper Morgan Wood stopped the seventh shot and backup goalkeeper Zoe Doughty made her shot to send the Tribe into the semis. Ivey Crain leads the Tribe with six goals and 13 points. Morgan Wood has played the last four games in goal for the Tribe with a 0.93 GAA and a .800 save percentage.

UP NEXT:
The winner between the Tigers and the Tribe will face the winner of No. 2 Hofstra and No. 3 Monmouth next Saturday or Sunday, Nov. 4 or 5 for the CAA Championship and a berth in the NCAA Tournament.