CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – Tasked with taking on a top-5 scoring offense in the country, the Towson men's lacrosse team used a dominant defense and a nine-point night by Alex Roussel to take down No. 17 Virginia 13-9 on Saturday night in Charlottesville.
 
Towson (3-3) used a 6-0 run in the first half to build a 7-2 advantage and never relinquished the lead to Virginia (3-3), holding the Cavaliers, which averaged 15.4 goals a game coming into this contest, to a season-low nine goals.
 
Towson earns its second win of the year against a team either ranked or receiving votes in the national polls.
 
Key Stats

• In a game that saw a combined 39 turnovers and nearly 100 ground balls, Towson's defense made 15 saves to Virginia's 10.  Towson won the faceoff battle 14-12.
• Matt Nilan had a 62.5% save rate in cage with 15 saves and nine goals allowed, including four saves and no goals allowed in the final quarter. 
• Alex Roussel had a historic night, earning nine points off five goals and four assists, all career-highs.  Joaquin Villagomez notched a hat trick, adding an assist and three ground balls.  Joe Meidling and Joe'll Spagnuolo each caused two turnovers, with the former adding three ground balls.
• Kai Lopez won 13-of-24 faceoffs and scooped 11 ground balls, also adding an assist.
• For Virginia, Truitt Sunderland finished with three goals and an assist.  The loss went to Jake Marek in goal with 10 saves and 13 goals allowed.

Postgame Quote, Head Coach Shawn Nadelen

• "Proud of the team's response after our Loyola game!  They challenged one another to give more and pulled each other together.  They made it about us and earned the win."

How it Happened

• Towson's defense held early on as Joe Meidling forced a turnover on the UVA opening possession, then Matt Nilan saved a close range shot on the catch and shoot attempt.  Just over six minutes in, UVA got a man-up chance and scored close range to take the early lead.
• Towson picked up a man-up opportunity of its own with 7:38 left in the first, taking advantage as Joaquin Villagomez fired a pass to Will Schoonmaker on the doorstep for the goal.  UVA got the goal back, then Towson immediately responded as Kai Lopez won a faceoff, rushed down and found Alex Roussel on the doorstep to tie the game, then Roussel scored again on a spin move around the crease to give Towson a 3-2 lead with 5:05 left in the first.
• The physical play picked up early as each goalie denied potential scores to the other offense.  Roussel picked up the early hat trick by emerging from behind the cage right side, stutter stepping away from two defenders and scoring low.  Nilan saved a shot close range to end the quarter, then going into the second, saved another right off a UVA faceoff win as Towson led 4-2.
• Towson's pressure and faceoff victories continued to cause problems for Virginia.  Trevor Phipps scored close range, Villagomez added another a minute later on a laser off the feed from Roussel then Mikey Weisshaar got the second chance shot off a failed UVA clear as Towson took a 7-2 lead with just over 12 minutes left in the second.
• Two goals in a span of 25 seconds for UVA brought the home team back within three.  Towson got the goal back minutes later as Alex Vieni threw a shot low past the feet of the keeper, then just over a minute later, Roussel got around his defender near the end line and scored low for his fourth goal and a 9-4 Towson lead with 4:57 left in the second.
• Though Virginia scored with just under three minutes left in the half, a couple of key saves from Nilan kept Towson's lead at four going into halftime 9-5.
• Towson picked up where it left off going into the second half as Roussel added his fifth goal on a low shot on the doorstep 85 seconds into the quarter.
• Towson forced another turnover on a faceoff win, but UVA got it back and scored the other way.  Another scrum off a Towson clear attempt led to UVA clearing itself and scoring on a fast break to pull within three.
• Towson had a couple of man-up chances and a long offensive possession to keep up the pressure.  A second chance effort from Roussel to Ryan Schrier led to a goal as Towson led 11-7 with 5:56 left in the third.
• After UVA scored a goal, Nilan stonewalled a couple of Cavalier shots, then Jake Law picked up possession and cleared.  Several minutes passed as Virginia scored again off a scrum, then Towson countered 10 seconds later as Villagomez scored low to give the Tigers a 12-9 lead after three quarters.
• Towson got a goal in the first few minutes of the fourth quarter as Roussel set up Villagomez for the finish.  Towson led 13-9 with 12:16 left to play.
• From the there, Towson's defense reigned supreme, forcing turnovers and holding off the UVA attack.  Nilan made saves while Towson SSDMs Matthew Wolfington and James Azbill grabbed ground balls and kept Towson's lead at four.  Towson shut Virginia out in the entire fourth quarter, sealing the game with a late caused turnover by David Bertoline Jr.  The Tigers took the win 13-9.

Inside the Numbers

• Towson earns its first victory against Virginia since May 15, 1991, snapping a 15-game losing streak against the Cavaliers.
• Towson picks up its first victory against a non-conference opponent currently ranked in the top-20 since defeating then No. 12 Loyola 7-6 in overtime on March 27, 2021.
• Alex Roussel surpasses his previous career-high of seven points, achieved at Syracuse on May 12, 2024 in the NCAA Tournament.  He has had four games with at least a hat trick this year.
• Joaquin Villagomez passed the career 100-point mark, now having 103 points off 75 goals and 28 assists.
• With a goal tonight, Mikey Weisshaar now stands alone at third in Towson history in career goals with 186.
• This is the third game this year, and second in a row, where Matt Nilan has had at least 15 saves.

Next Game

• Next Saturday, March 14, Towson will return to Philadelphia to play at Villanova at noon.  Villanova is receiving votes in the national polls.