The Series: Towson Tigers (8-5, 0-0 CAA) vs. UNCW Seahawks (5-13, 0-0 CAA)
Where: Boseman Field – Wilmington, N.C.
When: Saturday-Sunday, March 11-12 – Double header on Saturday, single game on Sunday with both days starting at 1:00 p.m.
Broadcast: Live stream on FloSports, live stats at UNCWSports.com.

TOWSON, Md. – Towson softball opens CAA play this weekend at defending champion UNCW on Saturday and Sunday on FloSports. The Tigers are sitting at 8-5 on the year after a double header sweep of Maryland Eastern Shore on Wednesday afternoon.

The Tigers outscored the Hawks 25-5 over the two games, their two biggest offensive outputs of the season. Mackenzie Lake leads the Tigers with a .475 batting average with a team-best 19 hits, four doubles, four triples and 11 RBIs. Madyson Peters is also averaging over .400 at .405. In the circle, Maddie Gardner is sporting a 1.40 ERA with just eight earned runs in 40.0 innings of work with 31 strikeouts. Erin Brown has a 2.45 ERA in 34.1 innings pitched.

The Seahawks and Tigers have met 30 times with the Tigers leading the all-time series 18-12. The Seahawks won the season series last year taking two of three in Towson. The Tigers took the series finale 6-0 after falling 4-2 and 3-1 in the first two games.

SCOUTING THE SEAHAWKS:
UNCW comes into the weekend at 5-13 on the year having lost their last two games against North Carolina A&T and South Carolina. The Seahawks have already played 10 games at home, going 4-6 in those games. Janel Gamache leads the team at the plate batting .400 with a team-best 20 hits, six doubles and 11 RBIs. Maddy Altiers has hit three home runs to lead the Seahawks. In the circle,
Gamache is sporting a 1.66 ERA in 25.1 innings.

NEWCOMERS:
Towson will have 10 newcomers suit up in the Black and Gold for the 2023 season. Eight of the ten newcomers are freshman who will be making their collegiate debuts, joining a pair of DI transfers in Erin Brown (Thousand Oak, Calif./La Reina/St. John's) and Maddie Gardner (Sun Prairie, Wisc./Sun Prairie/South Florida).

Brown comes to Towson from St. John's University where she made 46 appearances in the circle with 25 starts throwing 173.2 innings. She amassed an 11-20 record with nine complete games, three shutouts and two saves. Her best season came during the Covid shortened 2020 campaign, going 5-6 with a 2.95 ERA in 61.2 innings.

Gardner made six appearances in two seasons for USF in the circle. She sported a 1-0 record in five appearances in 2021, picking up a victory against Florida Atlantic in 2.0 innings of relief.
Alyssa Myint, Nadia Martyniuk, Cheyenne Beayon, Isabella Canesi, Cara Bohner, Addie Ferguson, Kellie Zoerb and Grace Franczyk will also suit up for the Tigers in 2023.

NEW LOOK PITCHING STAFF:
Towson returns just two pitchers who saw action in the 2022 season in Paige Kostick and Sydni Byers. Kostick saw action in seven games with four starts, tossing 28.1 innings with 11 strikeouts. Byers appeared in five games out of the bullpen. Also returning for the Tigers will be Morgan Wagner who missed the 2022 season due to an injury.

Three newcomers will join the pitching staff in freshman Cheyenne Beayon and transfers Erin Brown and Maddie Gardner. Beayon comes to Towson from Mount De Sales with Brown and Gardner transferring from St. John's University and University of South Florida. Brown made 46 career appearances for the Red Storm with nine complete games. Gardner made six appearances in her two seasons with the Bulls.

OFFENSIVE DEPTH:
The Tigers return four of their top five hitters from 2022, including offensive leader Briana Ramirez. Ramirez led Towson with a .379 batting average and a .434 slugging percentage a year ago. Ramirez finished second in the CAA in batting and will enter 2023 as the top returning hitter from a year ago while also finishing third in hits with 55 in 2022.

Mackenzie Lake, Sydni Byers, and Madyson Peters also return to help a Towson offense that hit .252 from the plate in 2022. Lake finished the year with a .303 batting average, leading the team with seven doubles and five home runs. Byers hit .256 tying Lake with seven doubles and team-best 25 RBIs. Peters went .245 from the dish with 27 hits and six doubles.

NEXT GAME:
Towson will return to Tiger Softball Stadium for a midweek double header against Saint Francis University on Wednesday, March 15. Game one with the Red Flash is set for 1 p.m. on FloSports.