Tigers split colonial road matches

By: Jordan Cope, Assistant Sports Editor 

Towson split a pair of Colonial Athletic Association matches this week, defeating Northeastern Sunday in Boston, and falling to Hofstra Friday in Hampstead, New York.

Sunday, the Tigers defeated the Huskies 3-1.

“It is really important for us to bounce back and beat Northeastern on Sunday,” senior Haley Pa’akaula said. “It puts us in a position that we can still possibly host the tournament. It also helps us gain our confidence going into a big match against James Madison.” 

In the first set, Towson earned a 25-7 victory.

After dropping the first point of the set, Towson went on a 12-0 run to take a 12-1 lead. Towson later went on a 4-0 run to extend its lead to 22-5 before closing out the set.

“We came out really strong in the first set,” Pa’akaula said. “[Jocelyn] had a really long serving run that gave us momentum to finish the set quickly.”

While the Tigers dropped the second set 25-22, the team rebounded in the following two sets and earned a 29-27 victory in set three and a 25-16 victory in set four. In set three, Towson trailed Northeastern 23-18 but went on a late 4-0 run to pull within one point.

Towson later took a 26-25 lead after a pair of attack errors from Northeastern before closing out the set on a 2-0 run.

In set four, the Tigers got out to a fast 7-3 lead thanks to an early 4-0 run. The Tigers later responded with another 4-0 run to take a 12-8 lead before taking the set and winning the match. Friday, Towson fell to Hofstra 3-2.

“Hofstra is always a solid team and this time around we didn’t play as cleanly as we did the first time around,” Pa’akaula said. “We made more errors and were always fighting from behind.”

The Tigers dropped the first set 25-23.

The Tigers held an 11-9 lead midway through the set, but a 5-0 run from the Pride put the Tigers down three points which prompted Metil to call a timeout.

After the timeout, Towson went on a 3-0 run to tie the game 14-14.

Towson later went on a 4-0 run to take a 20-18 lead, but Hofstra responded with a 4-0 run of its own to close out the set.

In set two, the Tigers earned a 25-14 victory. Towson jumped out to an early 4-1 lead after a 3-0 run.

Towson later went on another 3-0 run and a 4-0 run before winning the set and evening the match 1-1.

In set three, the Tigers fell 25-22.

Towson held a 14-12 lead midway through the set, but a 5-0 Hofstra run left Towson trailing 17-14.

Although Towson went on a late 3-0 run late in the set, Hofstra held on for the win after scoring on the final two plays.

In set four, the Tigers earned a 25-23 victory to force a decisive set five. Towson got out to a fast start thanks to an early 3-0 run.

Although Towson got out to a fast start, Hofstra responded midway through the set with a 4-0 run to cut into the Towson lead.

Despite the Hofstra rally, Towson hung on and won three of its last four points to secure victory.

In set five, the Tigers fell 16-14.

Towson took an early 2-0 lead in the set and were one point away from closing out Hofstra, but the Pride went on a 3-0 run to win the set and defeat the Tigers.

Next week, the Tigers will close out their regular season as the team battles James Madison Friday at SECU Arena and Delaware State Sunday in Dover. 

“We are really excited to get another shot at James Madison,” Pa’akaula said. “It’s senior night which makes it even more special.”

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