Towson and Loyola coaches tried to play up the Greyhounds' 3-2 win over the Tigers last Saturday as a defensive game, but it really was a snorefest because neither team could put together an offense.

 Loyola couldn't pitch and catch, and neither team could shoot. But shooting isn't just a problem for the two local teams. If you watch games around the country, the art of shooting has lost its way. The safest place for anybody is in the goal these days because most shots appear off the mark.

 Towson coach Tony Seaman has a theory that is popular among a lot of coaches, and I agree.

 "When kids today practice, they practice with their hands away from the body in shooting, because they are all trying for velocity rather than accuracy," Seaman said. "I think the way they string sticks, the bags in their sticks, prevent them from being really accurate, but they can have a lot more velocity, so they love it when the crowd goes ooooh.... They don't see what the coach is saying on the sideline.

 "It's a problem over the course of time."