WASHINGTON, Pa - Despite leading for the majority of their season opener, the 'new look' Barons fell to the Washington and Jefferson Presidents in a heartbreaking 75-72 loss in the Framers Insurance Tip-Off Tournament.

FUS went into the halftime break with a five point (37-32) lead on the Presidents and kept their foot on the gas, expanding the gap to nine in the second half. The Presidents got hot later in the second half and went on an 11-1 run with just over four minutes left in the game. Franciscan battled in hopes bringing the game into overtime with 35 seconds on the clock.

The last possession of the game belonged to Franciscan who shot three 3 pointers in hopes of pushing the game into extra minutes. All three shots were wide open, all three shots rimmed out.

"They were perfect shots and they just didn't fall." Head Coach John Lamanna said. "I'm extremely proud of the effort that the guys had tonight. They put themselves in the position to have success but came up short."

FUS played strong in their season opener battling hard not only to maintain large leads but also to over come larger deficits. Franciscan earned many hustle stats including seven steals, four blocks and 11 second chance points on 50 rebounds. Their roster, which featured four new players, did not have to worry about team chemistry, an obstacle that plagues many younger teams.

One of their talented newcomers, junior Guard Moses Sullivan, dominated the game for his team shooting 6-10 from the field with four shots coming from behind the arc. He finished with 19 points and four rebounds.

"He brings a lot of leadership and is such a great fit for our program," Lamanna said. "He has that level of toughness that we are looking to add. We really like watching him play and he is just going to get better."

Sullivan's toughness looks to be a strong compliment to sophomore Joseph Rine who finished first in the 2012 season for double-doubles and offensive rebounding in the Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference. Rine also finished second in the AMCC for blocks per game.

Senior forward Jordan Wilkinson also contributed toughness with 14 rebounds while Rine continued his progression with 10 rebounds and nine points, just one point shy of continuing his double-double performances that led the conference last season.

FUS will play Penn State-Greater Allegheny on Nov 17 at 1:00 giving them only 24 hours to move on from their heart breaking loss in order to split the tournament with a win.

"Tomorrow will be about discipline," Lamanna said. "We will be focusing on playing Baron Basketball."