Saturday's 8-7 win at Hofstra was Towson's 12th victory in 14 games, less than a year after the program went 12-6.
It marked the first time the Tigers have posted back-to-back 12-win seasons at the Division I level and the first time since they went 13-1 in 1971 and 12-6 in 1972 in Division II. These are encouraging times for the program, which is enjoying its best campaign in coach Shawn Nadelen's fifth year since a 14-1 record in 1974.
"It's pretty exciting for us as a program," Nadelen said Tuesday morning. "It goes to show how much work these guys have put into wanting to achieve success and do well on the field and play well together, and we're proud of what we're doing this year. We know that there's a lot of work ahead of us to improve, but our guys are focused on getting better every day and being able to put our best on the field, and fortunately for us, that resulted in quite a few wins this season."
As thrilling as stacking up victories has been, Nadelen said he takes his hints from the players and their feedback with the coaching staff.
"I think with regards to how our players in terms of working hard for each other and supporting each other and believing in our systems, that shows me that I think we're moving in the right direction," he said. "The result has been some wins, which is great, but the team really believes in each other and believes in what we're doing. They're working hard and improving and not just in practice with the competition level there, but also on the road and investing much more and understanding why that's important. So for me, that's more of a barometer of the program improving and moving forward."
No. 11 Towson (12-2 overall and 4-1 in the Colonial Athletic Association) will host the conference tournament, which opens at Johnny Unitas Stadium with a pair of semifinals on Thursday. The top-seeded Tigers will meet No. 4 seed Drexel (6-8, 2-3) in the first game at 4 p.m., and the second contest will feature No. 2 seed Fairfield (8-7, 4-1) and No. 3 seed Hofstra (9-5, 3-2).
Towson, which has not captured the CAA tournament crown at home since 2004, won the 2013 title at Penn State and the 2015 championship at Fairfield. Nadelen acknowledged that playing away from home can limit distractions and sharpen a team's focus.
"This will be the first experience for us with a Final Four atmosphere here," he said. "So we're going to make sure that our guys understand that it's another opportunity to play a home game and we have our sights set on improving ourselves and preparing for Drexel. … I don't feel that our players are putting any undue pressure on themselves. We're trying to focus on the fact that it's another lacrosse game against an opponent, a strong one and one that we're familiar just as they're familiar with us."