Towson Takes on Top-Ranked Virginia
from press release
TOWSON, Md. - After earning its first victory of the
season on Tuesday night, the Towson University men's lacrosse team
will finish its quick two-game homestand on Sunday afternoon by
hosting top-ranked Virginia at Johnny Unitas® Stadium at 12
noon.
The game will be broadcast live on ESPNU nationally and on WMAR-TV
in the Baltimore area. Scott Garceau will handle the play-by-play
duties while Mark Dixon will serve as the color analyst.
Now 1-3 on the season, the Tigers edged Navy by a 10-9 margin at
Unitas Stadium on Tuesday evening. Graduate student midfielder
Christian Pastirik (St. Mary's H.S./Annapolis, Md.) scored the
game-winning goal with six seconds left as the Tigers snapped a
three-game losing streak.
Pastirik scored three goals in the victory on Tuesday night for the
first "hat trick" of his college career while junior attackman Tim
Stratton (Manheim Township H.S./Lititz, Pa.) added three goals for
the Tigers, who were playing Navy for the first time since
1997.
Pastirik leads the Tigers with eight goals and five assists while
senior midfielder Will Harrington (Friends School/Baltimore, Md.)
has scored ten goals with an assist, including five extra-man
goals, which leads the Colonial Athletic Association.
Junior goalkeeper Travis Love (Winters Mills H.S./Westminster, Md.)
is expected to make his second straight start against the Cavaliers
on Sunday. He made a career-high 14 saves against Navy on Tuesday
night and has stopped 59.1 per cent of the shots he has faced this
season.
Off to a 7-0 start, the Cavaliers are coming off an 18-7 victory
over Vermont on Tuesday night at Klöckner Stadium. The
Cavaliers have outscored their opponents by a 100-50 margin this
season and have held six of their opponents under ten goals.
Senior midfielder Brian Carroll (Gilman School/Towson, Md.) matched
a career high by scoring five goals in the victory on Tuesday while
sophomore attackman Chris Bocklet (John Jay H.S./South Salem, N.Y.)
added four goals for the Cavaliers, who outshot the Catamounts by a
55-32 margin.
Bocklet is the Cavaliers' leading scorer with 21 goals and seven
assists while sophomore attackman Steele Stanwick (Loyola
Blakefield H.S./Baltimore, Md.) has contributed 10 goals with a
team-high 16 assists. Junior goalkeeper Adam Ghitelman (Cold Spring
Harbor H.S./Syosset, N.Y.) has posted a 7.09 goals against average
with a .562 save percentage.
The Tigers and the Cavaliers will be meeting for the 16th time in
the series, which Virginia leads by a 12-4 margin. Virginia has won
nine straight games over the Tigers after last year's 11-2 victory.
The Cavaliers used a 7-0 run spanning the second, third and fourth
quarters to beat the Tigers.
After Sunday's game against the Cavaliers, the Tigers will travel
to Loyola University Maryland on March 27 for a 12 noon game
against the Greyhounds at the Ridley Intercollegiate Athletic
Complex.
TIGER TIDBITS: The Tigers will be facing the
nation's top-ranked team for the 22nd time in the team's 52-year
history...Towson's last victory over a top-ranked opponent came on
April 4, 1992 against Loyola at Minnegan Stadium.
The Tigers snapped a 12-game losing streak against in-state
opponents on Tuesday night...Prior to Tuesday night's win, the
Tigers last victory over an in-state foe came against Loyola on
February 26, 2007.
After starting the season by converting five of eight extra-man
opportunities, the Tigers have struggled with the extra man. They
have converted just 2 of their last 13 chances.
The Tigers have been called for just 14 penalties in their first
four games, which are the fewest in the CAA. In addition, their
12.0 penalty minutes are the fewest in the CAA.
The Tigers will hold a ceremony at half-time of Sunday's game to
honor former Towson midfielder Drew Pfarr, who passed away over the
summer...A 2005 Towson graduate, Pfarr played in 56 career games
from 2001 to 2004 and helped the Tigers reach the NCAA Tournament
three times.
