Opening Faceoff
Towson kicks off its 58th season, and 37th at Division I, of varsity men's lacrosse, dating back to 1959 under then head coach Billy Hooper. Towson went 2-3 that season, with the program's first-ever win coming 7-4 over the Brown Lacrosse Club. Since then, the Tigers have amassed a 433-326 overall record, a 57.0 winning percentage. The Tigers are hunting their third-straight season opening win after topping High Point 11-8 in 2014 and besting No. 5 Johns Hopkins 7-5 at home last season. A win Friday would mark the first time since 2005-07 the Tigers have won three straight season openers.

In The National Rankings
Towson is the only CAA member institution to be ranked in any of the three major preseason polls. The Tigers slot in at No. 16 in the USILA Coaches' Poll and the Nike/Lacrosse Magazine Poll, while sitting at No. 17 in the Cascade/Maverik Inside Lacrosse Media Poll. Fairfield, Hofstra and UMass received votes in the Coaches' Poll, while only Fairfield received votes in the Media Poll

Looking at the 2016 Tigers
Towson returns nearly all of its lineup from a highly successful 2015 campaign, including three All-CAA selections in Tyler White, Joe Seider and Tyler Mayes. Backed by White, Towson also gets three close defensemen back who started at least eight games last season, Andrew Cordes, Nick Gorman and Mike Lowe. The Tigers' top three leading point getters are back at attack, with Seider (34g, 7a), Ryan Drenner (17g, 18a) and Spencer Parks (16g, 15). The big question mark entering the season would be midfield, but Towson looks to be athletic with probables Ben McCarty (10g, 6a), Mike Lynch (10g, 2a) and defensive middie come offensive middie Tyler Young (1a, 36gbs) starting on Saturday. Faceoff man Alec Burckley (151-284, .532) returns after helping Towson boost its faceoff winning percentage by 10 points from 2014 to 2015.  Defensive midfielders are another experienced group with Mayes and Pat Conroy at LSM, along with shorties Dan Carder and Jack Adams.

Scouting The Mercer Bears
Chris Rahill (19g, 14a) is the top returning point getter for Mercer. Listed on the roster, but not the probable starters, Chris Baxa (23g, 5a) was the second-leading point getter in 2015 and the top goal scorer for the Bears. Mercer reached the 2015 Southern Conference Tournament, but was bounced in the first round by eventual champion and Towson's First Four Opponent, High Point, 7-6. Mike Nugent is back in goal for the Bears after going 5-8 overall with a save percentage of 53.9 and a goals against average of 10.71.

Towson-Mercer History
Friday's game will be the third all-time meeting between the programs. Towson is 2-0 against Mercer, winning 17-8 in 2012 and 9-8 in overtime at home during the 2013 season.

Towson-Mercer By the Numbers
All-Time Series Record    Towson 2-0
    at Towson    Towson 2-0
    at Mercer    n/a
    at Neutral Sites    n/a
    at Unknown Sites    n/a
First Meeting    March 21, 2012
Last Meeting     Feb. 24, 2013
Streak    Towson +2

Last Time Out vs. Mercer
It was an overtime thriller on Feb. 24, 2013 as the since-graduated Thomas DeNapoli potted the game-winning goal with just over a minute left in overtime to lift Towson to a 9-8 win over the Bears at Johnny Unitas Stadium. DeNapoli was a force in that game, scoring four goals and adding an assist. Cory Dobyns had a pair of goals while Greg Cuccinello, Robby Zoppo and Matt Hughes all scored one. Cuccinello tacked on an assist, while Andrew Hodgson had a pair of helpers. Justin Mabus and current senior Ben McCarty had one assist each. Andrew Wascavage went the distance for Towson in 63 minutes, making seven saves en route to the win.

Careers Against Mercer
Only four Tigers have taken the field against Mercer in their careers: Brian Bolewicki, Dan Carder, Mike Lowe and Ben McCarty. Only one player, McCarty, has logged a point against the Bears with his assist in the 2013 game. McCarty is also the only current Tiger with two games played against Mercer, seeing time in 2012 as a true freshman and then again in 2013. Bolewicki has three lifetime shots against Mercer, while Mike Lowe has two shots and three groundballs. 

Saturday Becomes Friday
With a bitter cold chill in the air, the Towson versus Mercer 2016 season opener was moved from Saturday afternoon to Friday night under the lights at Johnny Unitas Stadium. Saturday's temperatures are forecasted to be in the upper teens, with winds near 25 miles per hour.  As of February 11, that game will be the lone night game at home for the Tigers in 2016.

Preseason Nods
Redshirt senior Tyler White has earned several preseason accolades, including Honorable Mention All-America by Inside Lacrosse. The Elmira Heights, New York native was also named to the Preseason All-CAA Team, along with junior attackman Joe Seider. Ryan Drenner, Mike Lowe and Tyler Mayes all earned Honorable Mention Preseason All-CAA plaudits.

That Defense, Though
Inside Lacrosse ranked out the top 10 Division I men's lacrosse defenses, according to its staffers. Despite ommitting top defensive midfielders Dan Carder and Jack Adams from its mentions, the Tigers were slotted fourth on the list behind Maryland, Notre Dame, and Navy.

Third Time's a Charm
The Tigers will be looking for their third-straight season opening win on Saturday. Towson topped High Point 11-8 to open 2014, followed by last season's historic 7-5 win over visiting No. 5 Johns Hopkins to kickoff the season.

Hot Starts Important, But Only So
While it's important to win every game, winning the season opener can set the tone for the year. In the CAA Era (2002), Towson has won six season openers. In four of those years, the Tigers have either won the CAA crown and the automatic NCAA qualifier or earned an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament. But a loss hasn't guaranteed missing the postseason; Towson dropped the 2003 and 2004 season openers, including an overtime loss against Rutgers in 2003, but reached the NCAA Tournament via the automatic qualifier. In 2013, Towson lost its season opener, but went on to capture the first CAA Championship under head coach Shawn Nadelen.

Home Openers Under Nadelen
Since taking over the program for the 2012 campaign, the Tigers are 3-1 all-time in homeopeners under fifth-year head coach Shawn Nadelen, winning the last two home openers, 11-8 over High Point (2014) and 7-5 last season against No. 5 Johns Hopkins. The lone home opening blemish on Nadelen's record is a 12-6 defeat against No. 4 Johns Hopkins in 2013.

Division I Season Openers
The season opening game is always a tough affair. The unexpected is expected as teams try to create their identity early on. Since joining the Division I ranks for the 1980 season, the program holds an all-time season opening record of 17-19, including winning the last two. Towson won eight-straight season openers from 1988-1995 under head coach Carl Runk. The Tigers are 3-1 in lid-lifters under fifth-year head coach Shawn Nadelen. The lone loss came 9-7 at High Point to kickoff the 2013 season, a year Towson went on to win its fourth CAA Championship.

All-Time All-Time Season Openers
Dating back to the program's first varsity season in 1959, the Tigers have held their own in season openers, including the program's first win, a 7-4 triumph over Brown Lacrosse Club. Since then, Towson is 26-31 all-time in season openers, including a 9-12 mark before elevating to Division I in 1980.

No Place Like Home
The Tigers have enjoyed home cooking at Johnny Unitas Stadium under head coach Shawn Nadelen. Since taking over for the 2012 season, Towson is 18-12 all-time on Minnegan Field, including six home wins in 2014. The Tigers have never lost more than three home games in a season under Nadelen.

2016 Captains
Three Tigers were tabbed as team captains for this season, as voted by the coaches and players. The 2016 tri-captains are Brian Bolewicki, Ben McCarty and Tyler White. The latter two are in their final season with the Tigers, while Bolewicki is a redshirt junior. 

A third-team All-America selection in 2015, White set the single-season program record goals against average (7.57) last season. During his Tiger career, White has logged nearly 2,000 minutes while allowing just 276 goals, including a career-best 133 last year. His 8.52 career goals against average ranks second all-time at Towson. Hailing from Elmira Heights, New York, White holds a career record of 20-13 and led the Tigers to their second Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) title during his time at the University.

A captain last season, McCarty will be a key threat in the midfield for Towson this season. During his career, McCarty has seen time in 49 games, including all 18 last season for the conference champions. The Westminster, Maryland product has 32 career goals, with two seasons (2013, 2015), scoring double-digit goals. McCarty has logged 60 groundballs while causing 10 turnovers.

Bolewicki returns to the active lineup as a redshirt junior after missing 2015 with a lower-body injury a local product, who played his high school lacrosse at Calvert Hall, Bolewicki has 26 career appearances, including 16 in his rookie season as Towson won the 2013 CAA Championship.

Preseason Favorites
After capturing the CAA Tournament title for a fifth time in program history, Towson was voted first in the 2016 CAA Predicted Order of Finish, as voted by the league's head coaches. Hofstra was voted second with 19 points and one first place vote, Fairfield was picked third with 18 points while Drexel rounded out the potential CAA Tournament field with 14 points. UMass and Delaware garnered eight and six points, respectively.