Towson, which entered the game ranked No. 14 in the nation, jumped out to a 4-1 lead in the first quarter before the Fightin' Blue Hens rallied to tie the game 4-4. However, the tie did not stand for long as Towson scored the final two goals of the first half to take a 6-4 lead into the break.
The Hens appeared to have cut the lead to 6-5 when senior defenseman Rob Smith raced the length of the field and scored with 7:10 left in the third quarter. But the officials checked Smith's stick and found it to be illegal, nullifying the goal and placing him in the penalty box for three minutes.
Towson took advantage of the man-up situation, scoring three straight goals to take a 9-4 lead. UD rallied to within 9-8 but was unable to overtake the Tigers.
Jordan Hall scored four goals for the Hens, and Curtis Dickson and Adam Zuder-Havens scored two each. Vincent Giordano added a goal and an assist and NCAA face-off leader Alex Smith won 15 of 23 draws. Goalkeeper Tommy Scherr had a season-high 17 saves.
With the loss, UD is now 6-5 overall and 1-2 in the CAA. The Hens have lost three straight and five of their last six after opening the season with five straight wins.
UD will return to action with a conference game against Villanova University at 7 p.m., Saturday, April 14, at Villanova Stadium. The Wildcats are 5-5 overall and, like the Hens, 1-2 in the conference.
