Hens Win CAA Title; Curtains for Seaman?
by Nelson Coffin | Special to Lacrosse Magazine Online
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Delaware goalie and CAA tournament MVP Noah Fossner made 16 saves Saturday in the Blue Hens' 12-9 win over top-seeded Towson. © Kevin P. Tucker |
TOWSON, Md. -- Riding a tsunami-sized emotional
wave of support for grieving junior goalie Noah Fossner and the
faceoff prowess of Dan Cooney (15-for-20), Delaware grabbed the
Colonial Athletic Association men's lacrosse championship from host
Towson on Saturday at Johnny Unitas Stadium.
The Blue Hens (10-6) earned a berth in the NCAA tournament with the
12-9 victory, while the Tigers (6-7) were denied their first bid
since bowing to Cornell, 14-6, in 2007.
Delaware rallied behind itsnetminder, whose mother, Elaine Fossner,
succumbed to breast cancer just two days before her son recorded 14
saves in a 15-12 win over Drexel in a CAA semifinal. Towson easily
handled UMass, 13-6, on the other side of the bracket.
Fossner has been able to somehow average 12.6 saves per game during
Delaware's current five-game winning streak despite his mother's
death. He finished the championship game with 16 saves and
tournament MVP honors.
"I talked over my game with my mom," said Fossner when asked about
how he handled the situation near the end of his mom's life. "She
told me I should be having fun. But as a 22-year-old kid, to lose
the woman who gave you life, it's a big deal all the time, even
when you're not thinking about it."
The Tigers also appeared to be jacked up by the thought of avoiding
a third consecutive losing season for veteran coach Tony Seaman,
reported to be on the hot seat after 12 seasons at Towson with a
96-83 career record.
"I always thought I'd be the one to decide when I'm leaving," said
Seaman, whose contract has yet to be renewed. "But I have the best
recruiting class I've ever had here offensively, and I'd love to be
a part of it. I haven't sat down with [athletic director] Mike
[Hermann] or the president [Dr. Robert Caret] yet. So, we'll see
where that goes from here. I might be the first [CAA] coach of the
year to be let go."
Regardless of their motivation, the Tigers jumped out to a 3-1
advantage on goals by sophomore attackman Matt Lamon, freshman
attackman Matt Hughes and senior middie Will Harrington in the
first quarter before the Blue Hens came at them like a freight
train, scoring eight of the next nine goals. Three of those were by
conference player of the year Curtis Dickson, who now boasts 62
goals (and 13 assists) this season and a program-best 162 in an
outstanding career after a five-goal performance.
Although Towson made it close in the fourth quarter, it was Fossner
who would not allow the Tigers to draw almost even. Trailing 11-9,
Towson senior attackman Christian Pastirik caused a turnover,
scooped a groundball and fired to a wide-open Tim Stratton on the
Blue Hen doorstep with 2:02 remaining.
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"I might be the first [CAA] coach of the year to be let go," said Towson's Tony Seaman, whose contract has yet to be renewed. © Scott Thornton |
Fossner, though, refused to fall for any of Stratton's several
fakes before turning the shot away.
"That's a save that kid will never forget," Seaman said. "Tim
Stratton will never forget it either. And I'll remember it until
I'm in the grave."
Fossner said he was undecided whether to go out of the crease to
challenge Stratton or bide his time.
He waited — and is glad he did.
"I saw him set his feet," the Niskayuna (N.Y.) product said. "And
that gave me time to set my feet, too. I went with his fakes and
got a piece of it."
Junior midfielder John Austin's empty-net goal with 1:05 remaining
sewed up the title for the Blue Hens, who owned the ground-ball
war, 40-22, and won 16 of 23 faceoffs.
Delaware coach Bob Shillinglaw, who guided the Blue Hens to a
national semifinal in 2007 and has coached in more games than
anyone in collegiate history, put in a good word for Seaman at the
end of his press conference.
"Tony Seaman has been good for Towson, good for the sport of
lacrosse and good for the kids," he said. "And you can't ask for
more than that."
