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Towson edges James Madison to keep CAA playoff hopes alive, 3-2

7 Nov, 2008

Freshman forward Liam Maloney (Liverpool, England) scored a  goal and added an assist as Towson University (8-5-4, 4-3-4) kept its Colonial Athletic Association Tournament hopes alive with a 3-2 victory over James Madison University (6-9-3, 3-7-1) in the regular season finale for both teams at the Tigers’ Towson Center Soccer Complex on Friday afternoon.

With the win, the Tigers remained in contention for one of the six CAA Tournament berths. The Tigers can clinch their fourth straight postseason appearance with a loss by either George Mason or Hofstra on Friday night. The Patriots will face Old Dominion while the Pride play at CAA-leading UNC Wilmington.

Maloney gave the Tigers a quick 1-0 lead in the 14th minute when he scored his team-leading seventh goal of the season off an assist from senior midfielder Matt Beckman (McDonogh H.S./Dundalk, Md.).

With 19:37 remaining in the first half, sophomore midfielder Chris Zecha (William Floyd H.S./Mastic, N.Y.) upped the Towson advantage to 2-0 when he scored his first goal of the season, converting passes from Maloney and senior Cesar Cisneros (Guadalajara, Mexico).

Sophomore defender Scott Horta (Notre Dame H.S./Lawrenceville, N.J.) extended the Towson lead to 3-0 at the 35:41 mark with his third goal of the year, scoring off assists from Cisneros and senior midfielder Eric Finney (River Hill H.S./Clarksville, Md.).

With 1:13 remaining in the first half, the Dukes narrowed their deficit to 3-1 when sophomore midfielder Kieran Rice (Gonzaga H.S./Burke, Va.) tallied his first goal of the season with a shot to the near side past freshman goalkeeper John Steele (Dorset, England). Sophomore Stefan Durr (Garmisch, Germany) and senior Alex Nydal (Langley H.S./McLean, Va.) were credited with assists on the goal.

Less than eight minutes into the second half, Durr cut the margin to 3-2 with his second goal of the season off an assist from junior Billy Swetra (Absegami H.S./Egg Harbor City, N.J.). However, the Dukes were unable to tie the game and the Tigers held on for the one-goal victory.

The CAA leader in save percentage, Steele made five saves in the win for the Tigers. Freshman goalkeeper Justin Epperson (Oakton H.S./Herndon, Va.) posted three saves for the Dukes, who were outshot by a 14-13 margin.

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