Turnovers cost TU vs Stony Brook
By: Jordan Kendall, Sports Editor
File Photo by: Brendan Felch/The Towerlight
The Tigers traveled to New York and faced the No. 6 Stony Brook Seawolves. Towson (1-4, 0-0 CAA) fell short to the Seawolves (3-1, 0-0 America East) 13-8.
Senior midfielder Shelby Stack and sophomore attack Kerri Thornton scored two goals each for the Tigers. Freshman goalie Carly Merlo started in goal and gave up seven goals while saving three shots.
For head coach Sonia LaMonica, it was a point of emphasis to play top teams in the non-conference schedule.
“It prepares us for conference play down the line,” LaMonica said to Towson Sports Network (TSN). “You learn a lot, ultimately you play tough teams and I felt that we have it in us to rise to the occasion.”
Towson fell behind 2-0 before Stack scored on an assist by sophomore attack Julia Porter. After Stony Brook senior midfielder Ally Kennedy scored two consecutive goals, Porter responded with an unassisted goal. The Seawolves responded with a 3-0 run and held the Tigers scoreless for eight minutes.
Towson responded with two goals from Kerri Thornton and junior attack Kaitlin Thornton. Porter assisted on each goal and they cut the Tigers deficit to 7-4 with 11:16 before halftime. Senior attack Taryn Ohlmiller scored three consecutive goals for Stony Brook, her first two gave the Seawolves a 8-4 lead at halftime.
“You gotta be smart, you gotta use your speed and you gotta get in the hole,” LaMonica said to TSN. “And you have to get your numbers in the hole because they are deadly.”
The Seawolves started the second half on a 4-0 run and held Towson scoreless for the first 17 minutes of the half. Kerri Thornton scored her second goal of the game with 12:51 left and the Tigers ended the game on a 4-0 run. Thornton’s goal ended a 29-minute scoring drought. In the final two minutes of the game, Towson scored two goals from Stack and sophomore midfielder Kerry Liucci.
The Tigers committed 17 turnovers in the game, six of which resulting in goals for Stony Brook.
“They got great sticks, they got great awareness,” LaMonica said to TSN. “They will capitalize and they will take advantage on a single mistake.”
Draw controls were a point of emphasis for Towson heading into the game, the two teams were tied with seven each at halftime, but the Tigers finished with 12 compared to 11 by the Seawolves.
“It isn’t just a technical skill,” LaMonica said to TSN. “It’s a mentality and we’ve been talking about that recently as a group. That mentality when you get back to the draws and to the line. You gotta be ready to outwork and outhustle particularly on those 50-50 plays.”
Towson returns home to Johnny Unitas Stadium on Tuesday, March 10 at 7 p.m. against Ohio State. This will be the second ever meeting between the Tigers and Buckeyes, and the first since 1996.
