When: Saturday, March 8, 2025
Where: LaValle Stadium | Stony Brook, N.Y.
Time: Saturday- 3 p.m.
Team Records: Towson (3-2) vs. #15 Stony Brook (3-2)
Stream: FloCollege
Series: Stony Brook Leads 11-0
TOWSON, Md. – The Towson University women's lacrosse team starts conference play this Saturday against #15 Stony Brook. The Black & Gold are coming off a loss to #15 Loyola last Saturday. The Tigers will be coming into Kristen Carr's second season as head coach for the Black & Gold. 
 
The Black & Gold are coming off a 7-9 season and a 4-4 season in conference play. The Tigers were 5-2 at home last season led by Milana Zizakovic who finished with a career-high 58 points, which earned her All-CAA Second Team honors last season.
 
The Tigers also return senior defender Shannon Sullivan who finished with career-highs in ground balls (39), draw controls (31) and caused turnovers (29). She finished eight games with two or more caused turnovers The defender also ranked fourth in the CAA in ground balls, finishing seven games with four or more.
 
Oh Captain! My Captain!
Junior midfielder Valerie Thompson, senior defender Shannon Sullivan, senior midfielder Milana Zizakovic, senior attacker Halley Koras and graduate defender Cameron Levine were named team captains for the 2025 season.
 
Climbing the Ranks    
Senior midfielder Milana Zizakovic is climbing up the ranks in multiple categories. Zizakovic is currently ninth all-time in program history in draw controls with 129. She has finished with 50 or more draw controls in two of her three seasons with the Black & Gold. She is tied with Nikki Marcinik for eighth all-time.
 
Zizakovic is now 14th all-time in program history in goals with 113. The midfielder has scored 40 or more goals in back-to-back seasons, including a career-best 44 last season. She trails Andi Raymond by 10 for 13th all-time.
 
Year Two at Towson
Towson will be welcoming back a few key freshmen from last season. Katie Roszko earned CAA All-Rookie Team honors last season after finishing third on the team in points with 32 in her first season. She totaled 21 goals to rank third on the team. She tallied 11 assists to rank third on the team. The sophomore midfielder added 16 draw controls and 15 ground balls. She currently ranks second on the team with ten goals and ranks second on the team in points with 12.
 
Defender Alexis Aaron and midfielder Bella Wojcik both return for their sophomore seasons. Aaron ranked fourth on the team in ground balls with 22. The Springfield, Pa. native had 14 caused turnovers, which was the third highest total on the team. She has three ground balls and caused turnovers so far this season. Wojcik had 12 ground balls and ten caused turnovers in her first season with the Black & Gold. She has registered two ground balls this season while Aaron has six ground balls and two caused turnovers.
 
Welcome to Towson!
Kristen Carr was named the Women's Lacrosse Head Coach in July 2023. The two-time gold medalist has made assistant coaching stops at North Carolina, Delaware, Stanford, Ohio State and Johns Hopkins. Carr was an IWLCA All-American defensive midfielder at North Carolina, where she made four NCAA Tournament appearances. In her second season with the Tigers, she will be welcoming Lyndsey Muñoz, Kristin O'Neill and Sylvie Waters to the staff.
 
O Canada
Milana Zizakovic returns for her senior season after being named to the All-CAA Second Team last season. The Calgary, Alberta native led the Black & Gold in points with a career-high 58. Zizakovic led the team in goals with 44 while ranking second on the team in assists with 14. The midfielder scored in 15 of the 16 games last season, tallying eight hat tricks last season. Zizakovic added 17 ground balls and eight draw controls last season. The senior midfielder became the 18th player in program history to score 100 goals at Towson.
 
Preseason Accolades
The Tigers were voted to finish in third place in the Coaches poll, earning 42 points, including one first-place vote. The Black & Gold were picked behind defending champion Stony Brook and Drexel. Senior midfielder Milana Zizakovic and senior defender Shannon Sullivan earned preseason honors for the Black & Gold.
 
Fresh Faces   
Kristen Carr welcomes a class of nine newcomers this season with eight freshmen and one graduate transfer. Carr brought in graduate defender Cameron Levine from Johns Hopkins where she coached her. Maci Shircel (att/mid), Elise Smith (midfield), Riley Padian (midfield), Gabrielle Bartels (midfield), Marin Colella (midfield), Gabby Bjugan (attack) and Jenna Cardeno (goalie).
 
Back at Unitas
The Tigers return to Johnny Unitas® Stadium for a pair of games this season for the second consecutive year. The Black & Gold will be hosting the Mount for the second straight year in Towson's season opener at Unitas. The Tigers will be hosting CAA foe Campbell at Unitas on Saturday, March 15th.
 
International Duty
Towson head coach Kristen Carr was selected to represent the United States in the inaugural 2024 World Lacrosse Box Championships. Carr helped the USA win the gold medal, going undefeated in the tournament and defeating Canada 10-7 in the championship.
 
Assistant Coach Rebecca Lane represented Australia at the 2025 Asia-Pacific Women's Lacrosse Championship earlier this year. Lane helped Australia win the silver medal after falling to Japan in the championship game.
 
Instant Impact
Jenna Cardeno has made an instant impact for the Tigers this season. The freshman goalie has 61 saves in five games to rank for sixth in the nation and first in the CAA. The Orange, Calif. native is second in NCAA and first in the CAA in saves per game averaging 12.2 saves per game. She leads the conference and ranks 13th in save percentage with a 51.3% mark. Cardeno was named CAA Rookie of the Week in back-to-back weeks and is the first player since 2022 to win the award in consecutive weeks since Shannon Sullivan did it.
 
Staying Home
The 2024 squad has 15 student-athletes that call Maryland home. Savannah Safchuck (Towson), Casey Meredith (Hampstead), Valerie Thompson (Sykesville), Mia Rehkemper (Catonsville), Katie Roszko (Bel Air), Elise Smith (Ellicott City), Kylie Ritter (Ellicott City), Sydney Casserly (Baltimore), Meghan Hoskins (Towson), Bella Wojcik (Perry Hall), Harli Hamlett (Sykesville), Halley Koras (Lutherville), Louise Aloi (Towson), Cameron Levine (Baltimore) and Alyssa Edwards (Perry Hall) all represent their home state.
 
Scouting Stony Brook
The Seawolves come into Saturday's matchup with a 3-2 record after picking up wins against Bryant, Villanova and UAlbany. Both of Stony Brook's losses have been by one goal to Johns Hopkins and Rutgers. Charlotte Wilmoth leads the Seawolves with 19 points and 17 goals while Casey Colbert leads the team in assists with 14.
 
Looking Ahead 
The Tigers will return home for a three-game homestand starting with Campbell on Saturday, March 15th at Johnny Unitas® Stadium at 3:00 p.m. The game will be streamed on FloCollege.