The Game: Towson Tigers (15-2-2) at North Carolina Tar Heels (10-1-8)
When: Friday, November 10 – 6:00 p.m.
Where: Dorrance Field– Chapel Hill, N.C.
Broadcast: Live stream on ESPN+ and the ESPN app, live stats at TowsonTigers.com
Series: First Meeting

TOWSON, Md. – Towson women's soccer will make their first appearance in the NCAA Tournament with a first round matchup against ACC powerhouse North Carolina on Friday night. The Tigers have won four straight including a 2-1 win against Monmouth to capture the CAA title on Sunday. Phoebe Canoles scored the game winner with 10 minutes to go and Riley Melendez saved a penalty kick with two seconds left in the win.

The game will stream on ESPN+ and the ESPN app and live stats will be available at TowsonTigers.com. Tickets are available at GoHeels.com/Tickets.

This will be the first all-time meeting between the Tigers and Tar Heels. Towson is 0-5 all-time against current ACC opponents having played Clemson, N.C. State, Pitt, Virginia and Virginia Tech.

WE ARE THE CHAMPIONS!:
The Tigers won the Coastal Athletic Association (CAA) regular season and tournament titles each for the first time in program history. Towson earned the one seed in the conference tournament and won just their third and fourth ever CAA Tournament games since joining the league in 2002.

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 third in shots with 200. The Bermuda native is behind current teammate Phoebe Canoles in all-time shots, with Canoles recording 212 shots. Jacey Miller has played in 82 career games, setting the program record for games played.

Goalkeeper Riley Melendez is second in career shutouts with 28 and is tied with hall of famer Tina Steck in first place. Melendez is also top ten in saves (8^th, 227).

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:
North Carolina comes into the NCAA Tournament at 10-1-8 on the year with their first loss of the season coming in their most recent matchup against Pitt, 2-1 in the ACC Quarterfinals. The Tar Heels are making their 42^nd straight NCAA Tournament appearance, the only team to appear in every tournament since the inaugural tournament in 1982. UNC has won 21 national titles with their last one coming in 2012.

The Tar Heels are averaging 2.05 goals per game and allowing just 0.74 per game and 6.6 shots per game. Avery Patterson and Ally Sentnor lead the Heels with 18 points each with Patterson scoring eight goals and Sentnor adding seven and four assists. Emmie Allen has seen majority of the minutes in goal allowing 13 goals (0.78 GAA) with 35 saves (.729 save percentage) and six shutouts.

UP NEXT:
The winner between the Tigers and the Tar Heels with play the winner of Western Carolina and Alabama in the second round next weekend.