STEUBENVILLE, Ohio—It was Senior Night for the Franciscan University soccer program as the men's and women's teams hosted the University of Pittsburgh at Greensburg. Despite being up 2-1 at the beginning of the second half, the men relinquished their lead in the second half to lose 4-2. The women, however, were able to post a shut-out victory over the Lady Bobcats, 5-0.

All season, the men's team has struggled to come back from early deficits. However, Tuesday was different. After finding themselves down 1-0 in the first half, Brian Murray gathered a pass on the left side, 35 yards out from the goal, and shot the ball into the top right corner of the net to tie the score.

Just sixteen seconds later, Blake Bonilla received a pass through the middle from Tommy Allen and chipped the ball over the Greensburg goalkeeper's head, giving the Barons a 2-1 lead going into halftime.

"Scoring our first goal really quickly [after Greensburg scored first] was huge for us because it usually takes us a while to pick our heads up and get right back into it," said assistant coach Billy Herrmann. "That first goal opened our eyes to the fact that we were capable of scoring goals. I think that hard work from individual players – Tommy Allen, especially – was big for us."

The Barons couldn't muster the needed second half offense as they gave up three unanswered goals to drop their final game of the season, 4-2.

"Even though one team scores a goal and our team comes back and scores two quick goals, you always have to be mindful that there is still a lot of game to play," added Herrmann. "For most of the game I think Greensburg was a little hungrier than us and finished some opportunities from our defensive mistakes and breakdowns."

The Lady Barons had a much different result.

"The girls had fun," said Herrmann. "They just played really well and had a great time. We were creative—the girls made some creative runs—and our defense played solid. We played clean, we didn't make many mistakes, we played safe, and it was perfect—a good game to go out on."

The Lady Barons had struggled as of late, dropping four of their previous five games entering Tuesday's game. Herrmann noted that he was happy with the way some of the key offensive players stepped up.

"Some of the girls who hadn't scored in a while came through for us and got some goals and helped us get the win," Herrmann said. He added that the fans played a tremendous part in the level of play put forth by the Lady Barons. "The girls appreciated [all the fans in attendance] and I think they loved the fact that they stayed to support everyone in honoring the seniors."

Scoring for the Lady Barons on the day were five different scorers: Julia Cocozza, Ashley Ruttencutter, Amanda Looman, and seniors Jackie Lon and Kelsey Bowers. Ruttencutter, Lon, and Jordan Bryley recorded assists on the day.

Bowers is a defender by trade for the Lady Barons, but the coaches decided to put her up as a forward for the end of the game in an attempt to get a goal in her final career game, and she came through much to the excitement of her teammates and the fans.

The men finish the season with a record of 2-14 and 1-8 in the Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference. With their Senior Night victory, the women improve to .500 on the year with an 8-8 overall record and a 4-5 conference record.