TOWSON, Md. - The Towson University women's lacrosse team is on the road out west this week as they travel to Colorado to face #19 Denver on Thursday, February 19 at 2:00 p.m. EST and #6 Boulder on Saturday, February 20 at 2:00 p.m. EST. The Tigers are coming off a 9-17 loss against Georgetown. Towson will be entering with Kristen Carr as the head coach for the Black & Gold for the third season.
Preseason Accolades
The Tigers were voted to finish in third place in the Coastal Athletic Association (CAA) Preseason Coaches' Poll, earning 33 points. The Black & Gold were picked behind CAA defending champion Stony Brook and Drexel. Senior midfielder Valerie Thompson and junior Katie Roszko were named to the All-CAA team, while senior Ocea Leavy and sophomore Jenna Cardeno earned honorable mention recognition.
Welcome (Back) 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. Alongside Rebecca Lane, Lyndsey Muñoz and Kristin O'Neill, Carr will be welcoming back Milana Zizakovic as the team's Director of Player Development.
Fresh Faces
Kristen Carr welcomes a class of eleven newcomers this season with seven freshmen and four transfers. Carr brought in senior attack Acacia Connor (Syracuse), sophomore midfielder Jacinda Connor (USF), graduate attack Elise Smigiel (Penn State) and graduate goalie Sienna Parekh (University of Nottingham). Carr's freshmen class consists of Courtney Xippolitos (defender), Tabi Reardon (midfielder), Karsen Hippert (mid/def), Annie Minoglio (attack), Emma Dulin (goalie), Lisa Magill (midfielder) and Kylie Trainor (midfielder).
Back at Unitas
The Tigers return to Johnny Unitas® Stadium this season on Saturday, March 28 to host CAA foe Hofstra.
Staying Home
The 2026 squad has 14 student-athletes that call Maryland home. Savannah Safchuck (Towson), Casey Meredith (Hampstead), Valerie Thompson (Sykesville), Annie Minoglio (Bel Air), Acacia Connor (Towson), Katie Roszko (Bel Air), Elise Smith (Ellicott City), Kylie Ritter (Ellicott City), Sydney Casserly (Baltimore), Bella Wojcik (Perry Hall), Harli Hamlett (Sykesville), Emma Dulin (Centreville), Cameron Levine (Baltimore) and Jacinda Connor (Towson) will all represent their home state.
Scouting Denver
Denver enters Thursday's matchup with a 2-0 record. The Pioneers secured two wins against USC (15-4) and Arizona State (14-7) after opening weekend. On Monday, BIG EAST named Olivia Ripple the league's Attacker of the Week after scoring five goals against USC and three goals against Arizona State. Prior to the start of the season, Ripple was named a USA Lacrosse Preseason All-American as well as Preseason Attacker of the Year by the conference. Alex Dorr, Megan Klingenberg and Lexi Gwaku additionally earned preseason All-Conference nods. Denver was selected as favorites to earn the BIG EAST regular season title for the seventh consectuvie season.
Scouting Boulder
The Buffaloes enter Saturday's matchup with a 2-0 record. Boulder opened its season with a 10-9 win over #2 Northwestern, followed by a 8-5 win over Cornell. Maddie Shoup, Jess Peluso and Elena Oh earned Big 12 Player of the Week honors following the team's week one performance. Prior to the start of the season, Peluso was selected as one of two Preseason Co-Defenders of the Year, while Oh was voted as the conference's Preseason Goalkeeper of the Year. Along with Shoup, midfielder Lily Assini also tabbed Preseason All-Big 12 recognition. All four players were unanimous selections. Boulder was selected to finish third in the preseason coaches' poll.
Up Next
The Tigers will return to Tiger Field on Thursday, March 4 to face Temple at 4:00 p.m. The game will be streamed on FloCollege.
