TOWSON, Md. — The Towson University men’s lacrosse team can’t wait to get this season underway. A big reason why is because that’s when they can start to officially put last season to rest.
The Tigers open their regular season on Saturday, in Emmitsburg, against Mount St. Mary's. Shawn Nadelen enters his 12th season as head coach. His roster is an experienced one. Most of the core returns from a team that last spring advanced to the Colonial Athletic Association Tournament Final. It was a team that saw its championship and NCAA Tournament dreams vanish in that game, losing to rival Delaware.
That defeat that has haunted the Tigers for the past nine months and you know it serves as motivation as they begin anew.
"It fuels us a lot," said midfielder Ryan Swain. "We all remember what happened in that game. We try to put it behind us a little bit but we do have it in the back of our mind that that is fuel for this year."
"We’re definitely still thinking about it. You never want to end the season on such a bad note," said defenseman Garrett Zungailia. "Everyone kind of thought about it over the summer as everyone is kind of working out on their own and everything and coming into fall ball. It’s definitely still in the back of everyone’s minds."
"The guys are motivated. They achieved some decent success last year but falling short in the conference championship game is obviously something that we want to be one step better than this year," added Nadelen.
Towson is picked to finish second in the CAA. Picked to finish first - their nemesis, Delaware.
Saturday's game at Mount St. Mary's begins at 3:00 p.m.
Follow Shawn Stepner on Twitter @StepnerWMAR and Facebook
