Tyler Young will think about final play for rest of his life

FOXBOROUGH, MASS. — Tyler Young was two steps from glory. Just as he was about to take the ball to the goal, the Towson senior midfielder saw a teammate cutting to open space and elected to pass.

It's a decision the Arundel High graduate will be reviewing in his mind for a long time.

Ohio State defender Jeff Henrick delivered a perfectly-timed check from behind just as Young's pass arrived on the stick of Towson attackman Tyler Konen and the result was a turnover that ended the nailbiter of a game.

Third-seeded Ohio State escaped Gillette Stadium with an 11-10 win against Towson because it was able to make one last defensive stand. The Buckeyes survived a terrific shot by attackman Joe Seider that could have tied the score then succeeded in getting the ball out of the stick of Ryan Drenner, the Tigers' dangerous offensive quarterback.

There were about 12 seconds remaining in the game when an Ohio State defender slid quickly to double-team Drenner behind the cage. Drenner was forced to dish the ball to Young, who was also working behind the goal at the time.

Young quickly drove in from behind and had a split-second decision to make at the moment of truth. The Crofton resident appeared to have enough space to get to the front of a goal, but spotted Konen cutting to the crease and

"They double-teamed Drenner so he dumped off to me. I caught it, split to my left, saw there were two or three seconds left, saw Konen cutting and thought I could hit him," Young said. "I didn't realize the defender was so close on (Konen's) back. It all happened so fast. I kind of force-fed the ball. Probably should have just turned the corner and shot it. It's a play I'll think about over and over again for the rest of my life."

Towson head coach Shawn Nadelen declined to question Young's judgment as it did appear momentarily that Konen was open out front. Nadelen also noted that Young is not accustomed to operating behind the net and was also carrying the ball in his off hand.

"Tyler was in a tough spot. There were people coming to him and he had a short time to make a decision," Nadelen said. "The turnaround, having to go left-handed, being in a spot he's not too familiar with. I don't know if we get a better result, so I don't question his decision."

Young, who is a dominant right-handed player and normally dodges from up top, refused to use any of that as an excuse.

"With the way our offense is set up everybody should be able to play every position on the field. We've done drills in practice in which I've been in that spot," he said.

That fateful final offensive possession brought a disappointing end to an otherwise uplifting season for Towson (12-4), which captured its third straight Colonial Athletic Association. The unseeded Tigers then upset seventh-seeded Penn State and second-seeded Syracuse to reach the Division semifinals for just the third time in program history.

"Coach came in and was pretty emotional. Some of the guys in the locker room are still pretty emotional. It stings a lot right now," Young said. "It will probably take a couple weeks, maybe a couple months, to realize how special this journey was. I'm sure one day we'll look back on this season, on this NCAA run, and it will be a pretty cool thing to think about."

Nadelen, in his sixth season at the helm, has rebuilt a program that had suffered four straight losing seasons under predecessor Tony Seaman. This year's crop of seniors comprised the first full recruiting class of the Nadelen era. Young, Seider, Konen and Drenner were part of a strong group that also included standout short stick defensive midfielder Jack Adams, offensive midfielder Mike Lynch and starting goalie Matt Hoy.

"Too much is going through my mind, all the way back to recruiting these guys," Nadelen said. "This senior class definitely is a special one in our hearts as a staff. What they've come in and been able to do with the program — to help it move forward and leave it better."

Nadelen detailed how so many of the seniors battled through injuries with Seider and Lynch rebounding from off-season surgeries, Jack Adams fighting through a hamstring issue and Brian Bolewicki being unable to practice while wearing a boot for for three weeks.

While many credit the Class of 2017 for turning around the Towson program, Young believes it was actually the Class of 2013, which ended five years of losing by posting a 10-8 record.

"I think it started five years ago with the senior class that graduated. They kind of set that bar and showed what you have to do in practice, in the weight room and on your own," Young said. "The culture they built was instilled in my class and we kind of ran with it. I'm just really proud to be part of this team and especially this senior class."

Towson boasts a cumulative record of 40-14 with three NCAA Tournament appearances over the last three seasons. The Tigers reached the NCAA quarterfinals in 2016, finishing with the most wins (16) in program history.

"Hopefully, the team that's coming back can take that next step and make it to Monday and hopefully bring back a national championship one day," Young said.

Sophomore midfielder Jon Mazza admitted the seniors have set the bar high for Towson lacrosse. The Davidsonville resident was disappointed the Tigers could not send this respected class out in style.

"All the credit goes to the seniors. They've helped bring this program back to life. It's really been an honor and a privilege to play with them. They've helped me grow on and off the field," Mazza said. "It sucks that we couldn't help the seniors win a championship."

Towson advanced to the final four for the first time since 2001 when it was beaten by Princeton, 12-11.

"We failed in our mission because we didn't win a championship, but there is some sense of accomplishment because we had such a great season and got this far," Mazza said. "It's on all the underclassmen to keep this program at the level it is now."

Young and Mazza were among numerous Anne Arundel County products who were important contributors for Towson this season. Mazza finished fifth on the team in scoring with 20 points on the strength of 16 goals. Young wasn't far behind with 16 points and also gobbled up 27 ground balls.

Sophomore short stick defensive midfielder Zach Goodrich (Kent Island High) was named a second team All-American after racking up 47 ground balls and 19 caused turnovers. Sophomore specialist Alex Woodall (St. Mary's) racked up 188 faceoff wins.

All played pivotal roles on Saturday with Mazza totaling a goal and an assist. The Calverton School product was the only person in Gillette Stadium that initially realized he had scored late in the first quarter. The 6-foot-3, 205-pounder had his left-handed crank shot skip off the stick of goalie Tom Carey and sneak across the goal-line.

"It definitely wasn't one of my cleanest goals. I saw it hit the goalie and then I saw it hit the white line. I put my arms up and looked at the ref, then he put his arms up, too," Mazza said.

Young ended a more than nine-minute drought for Towson when he dodged hard down the left alley and fired a lefty sidearm shot into the top corner. Woodall neutralized Ohio State counterpart Jake Withers in the first half, capturing seven of 12 draws. However, Withers dominated the second half and wound up winning 15 of 25.

Woodall, who had suffered a hamstring injury in the first-round win against Penn State, sat out most of the second half as Towson went with Connor Harryman on the draws. Nadelen said afterward that Woodall has not been 100 percent for the past two weeks and thought he wore down while working against Withers, a second team All-American.