The mantra goes, "offense wins games, defense wins championships." In the case of the Towson women's lacrosse team, a dominate defense opens doors for an explosive offense.
Led by head coach Sonia LaMonica, the Tigers have had tremendous success through the first half of the 2016 season. With an 8-2 record, they've only allowed one opponent to score double digit goals. The zone defense combined with senior leadership and a great goal keeper has created a stone wall defense.
Freshman Angie Benson was recognized as the CAA defensive player of the week. She's only a freshman, but she's filling big shoes.
"She done a tremendous job," LaMonica said. "It's never easy for a freshman getting adjusted to the collegiate game. She comes from a non-traditional area - Florida. Lacrosse is still growing and green there. Not only that, but the position as a goalie. That's a tough position to step into at the collegiate level."
Benson has taken it in stride, stepping up and quarterbacking the defense and ultimately making the unit stronger.
The quick, aggressive defense has opened opportunities for the offense. Freshman Carly Tellekamp was recognized as CAA rookie of the week for the fourth time this season. She's scored multiple goals in her 10 games at the collegiate level. Tellekamp leads the team with 19 goals.
"Any great offense starts with great defense and we've certainly had a number of instances," LaMonica said. "A great defensive play, we push the ball down the field and we're able to capitalize on a scoring opportunity. Those are some of the best moments for a coach."
The Tigers have six games remaining in their regular season schedule, five of which are CAA contests. A strong conference performance will be important looking ahead to the CAA tournament and a possible NCAA tournament bid.
"We're definitely talking and working through being ready to execute our best," LaMonica said. "We have to do that each step of the way through the rest of the season. If we're interested in being successful within the CAA as well as post tournament play, we gotta take care of business."
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