Towson women’s soccer earns No. 1 seed, six Tigers earn All-CAA Honors
By Sam Peterson, Senior Staff Writer
The Towson women’s soccer team continued to set records during their 2023 campaign. For the first time in program history, Towson won their first CAA regular season title after defeating the defending champion Hofstra 2-0 on Oct. 22.
Towson earned four of the six major awards given out by the CAA, the league announced on Oct. 25. Head coach Katherine Vettori was unanimously named Coach of the Year, and senior forward Nia Christopher was awarded Attacking Player of the Year.
Senior goalkeeper Riley Melendez became the first player in CAA history to earn back-to-back Goalkeeper of the Year recognitions while senior forward Jasmine Hamid earned Midfielder of the Year.
Four Tigers were named to the All-CAA First Team, including Hamid, Melendez, Christopher and senior midfielder Phoebe Canoles. Graduate midfielder Demi Pierre and senior defender Maja Hansson earned All-CAA Third Team honors, respectively.
Christopher’s 2023 season was one for the Towson history books. The Bermuda native currently ranks eighth in the NCAA in points with 33 and 14th in goals with 12. Christopher broke the program record for points, goals and game-winning goals this season as she earned her third consecutive All-CAA First Team honors. Christopher earned All-CAA Weekly Honors three times in 2023.
Melendez continued to anchor the Tiger defense in her fourth season defending the net. The two-time Goalkeeper of the Year allowed 10 goals this season and recorded eight shutouts. Melendez finished third in saves in the CAA with 48 and a save percentage of .828.
Hamid was a catalyst for the Tiger offense throughout the season, leading the league in goals with 13, tying her for ninth nationally. Hamid finished with five game-winning goals, second most in the CAA behind Christopher. The Alexandria native ranked 12th in points nationally with 29.
Canoles, the fourth Tiger to earn All-CAA First Team, finished with eight goals and eight assists for 24 points. Canoles finished in the top three in the CAA in points and top four in assists.
Hansson and Pierre earned All-CAA Third team, contributing to the Tigers’ +29 goal differential. Pierre totaled one goal and four assists alongside Hansson’s one goal and one assist in 2023. This season was the first season Hansson earned All-CAA Honors and was the second season for Pierre.
Vettori was unanimously voted Coach of the Year by the league’s head coaches. In Vettori’s seventh season at the helm, the Tigers tied for the second most wins in a season at 13. In back-to-back years, Vettori has led the Tigers to double-digit win seasons.
Towson is currently one game shy of the record for wins in a season. The Tigers sit at 13-2-2 with a CAA record of 9-1-2 and will have a bye into the CAA Championship.
Towson will play the winner of No. 4 Northeastern and No. 5 Wiliam & Mary on Sunday, Oct. 29, at 1 p.m. at Tiger Field.
