It started with a Cara Trombetta ground ball pickup off a turnover.
After the play moved downfield, the ball ended up in the stick of senior attacker Mollie Stevens, who shot the ball at Towson goalkeeper Angie Benson.
The goalie blocked the shot, but the deflected ball landed in front of senior attacker Sammi Burgess. Burgess picked it up put it into the back of the net, giving the Gators a comfortable 4-1 lead with 14 minutes left in the half.
Behind a career-high seven points from Burgess, the No. 3 Gators (3-1) defeated No. 16 Towson (3-3) 13-6 on Saturday in Maryland.
This was Florida’s second win over a ranked opponent in the last two weeks.
"What a great opportunity for us to come to Maryland and beat an experienced team like Towson in front of a lot of orange and blue in the stands,” coach Amanda O’Leary said.
Burgess finished the game with three goals and a career-high four assists, but she wasn’t alone in the Gators’ scoring.
Stevens scored three goals behind three of Burgess’s assists. Junior attacker Shayna Pirreca and freshman midfielder Brianna Harris each scored two goals of their own, with Harris also recording two assists.
Late in the first half, UF started what became an 8-0 run over 34:48. Those eight goals proved to be enough for Florida to take the victory, as it won by seven goals.
UF didn’t just control the scoreboard, it also controlled both sides of the ball, as well.
On offense, Florida scored 13 goals on 47 shots, 30 of which were on goal.
The defense, though, was even more impressive.
The Gators limited the Tigers to 16 shots and caused 10 turnovers.
The defense also held Towson to one first-half goal.
To top off a great defensive effort, senior defender Taylor Bresnahan set the UF all-time caused turnover record when she recorded the 71st caused turnover of her career.
After an easy win over a ranked Towson team, the Gators will need to turn their attention towards Loyola, their last game on the Maryland road trip, on March 8 in Baltimore.
Loyola enters the game still looking for its first win. In four games this season, Loyola has let up 54 goals, while only scoring 38.
“It took a complete team effort to get the win today, and we're looking forward to regrouping in the next couple of days to get ready to face a talented Loyola team on Wednesday,” O’Leary said.
Follow Jake Dreilinger on Twitter @DreilingerJake, or contact him at jdreilinger@alligator.org.
Florida attacker Mollie Stevens (right) chases the ball in UF's loss to North Carolina on Feb. 11.
