PHILADELPHIA – The No. 17/16 Towson University men's lacrosse team narrowly fell for a second time in a road game in the young season, coming up just short in a 12-11 defeat to Saint Joseph's 12-11 on Friday night.
Towson (1-2) looked to fight back down 9-6 early into the third quarter at Saint Joseph's (2-1), coming back to within one four times. Towson had a final possession and had several shots at the goal, but the Hawks held for the win.
Key Stats
- Towson dominated at the face-off X, winning 18-of-27. Kai Lopez won 17-of-26 on the night.
- Shots were even 38-38 in the game.
- Joaquin Villagomez led Towson with three goals in the game. Mikey Weisshaar had two goals and an assist while Trevor Phipps notched two goals.
- The loss went to Matt Nilan in goal with nine saves and 12 goals allowed. Jake Law caused a pair of turnovers on defense.
- For Saint Joseph's, each Tyler Moore and Ben Dutton had three goals and an assist. Tommy Gross got the win in cage on 13 saves and 11 goals allowed.
How it Happened
- A faceoff violation gave Towson the opening possession. Off a second chance from a ground ball, Owen Scott found Will Schoonmaker in front of the cage for the catch and shoot goal. Another faceoff win, then after a missed shot, Trevor Phipps hit his shot around a screen.
- After some back and forth turnovers, Towson took advantage of St. Joe's 10-man ride as Matt Nilan found Phipps near the cage. The freshman scored on the empty net and gave Towson a 3-0 lead with 10:24 left in the first.
- Nilan held the line against several Hawk shots, including during a 6-on-4 situation. St. Joe's broke through with its first goal with 2:30 to go in the first, adding another on a longpole goal after a caused turnover. Before the end of the quarter, Alex Roussel picked up his own saved shot on the doorstep and put it back in. Towson led 4-2 after one.
- The action continued back-and-forth going into the second quarter as each goalie held their ground against multiple shots. St. Joe's got the first goal of the second with a Griffin Mallory score 4:43 into the quarter. Towson got the goal right back as Matt Burham found Ryan Schrier on the doorstep for the goal inside the right post.
- Towson's defense held against the Hawk offense but had turnovers against the 10-man ride. Towson finally got a long possession with two passes striking iron, but St. Joe's held on a back up on a missed shot. After a Towson potential goal was wiped out due to a step in the crease, Tyler Moore scored the other way for the home team, adding another on a crease dive goal. The score was tied 5-5 at half.
- Towson again started the half strong as Mikey Weisshaar had a perfect pass inbetween two defenders to find Joaquin Villagomez next to the goal for the close range score. Minutes later, St. Joe's equalized from Ben Dutton just inside the left post, taking the lead less than a minute later. Towson got out of slash man-down penalty, but two more quick goals forced a Towson timeout as the Tigers trailed 9-6 with 9:01 left in the third.
- Kai Lopez continued to win faceoffs, but the St. Joe's defense continued to hold. Towson finally broke through the ride after a saved shot from Nilan as Weisshaar scored one-on-one with the keeper to pull Towson within two at 9-7 with 4:36 left in the third.
- After James Azbill forced a turnover and Towson cleared, Matt Burham pulled a double team to free Villagomez, who pocketed the laser shot inside the left corner to get Towson within one. A Will Barber goal for St. Joe's with 1:50 to go in the third put the lead back to two at 10-8 Hawks, the eventual end of third quarter score.
- Both defenses stifled the other offenses to begin the fourth quarter as Towson looked to chip away. Villagomez got inside and double team and scored on a run to the cage to get Towson back within one with 9:50 left. Following a turnover on the Towson won faceoff, Saint Joseph's got the goal back the other way as Towson trailed 11-9, 8:10 to play.
- The faceoff wins continued to pay off as Towson shelled the game with Weisshaar, as Burnam scored on the third chance on the doorstep. A long St. Joe's possession led to a goal as the home team led 12-10, 4:14 left.
- Towson put together its final gasp after a defensive stand, leading to Weisshaar scoring. Another stand led to Towson forcing a shot clock violation and clearing for a timeout with 45.1 seconds left. Towson fired away and twice had shots on cage, but St. Joe's held fan won 12-11.
Inside the Numbers
- All three of Towson's opponents to start the year are receiving votes in the USILA Coaches Poll.
- With two goals tonight, Mikey Weisshaar has 115 career goals for Towson, fourth all-time in Towson history.
- Kai Lopez earned a new career-high in faceoff victories in a single game, passing his previous high of 15 at UMBC on Feb. 28, 2025.
- Joaquin Villagomez earns a hat trick for the second straight game.
Next Meet
- TowsonTigers.com –
