STEUBENVILLE, OHIO - The Franciscan University Men's Soccer team will face Messiah University, Conference Champion of the Middle Atlantic Conference (MAC) Commonwealth in the first round of the NCAA Division III Championship on Saturday, November 12th at 1:00 p.m. The match will be hosted by Messiah in Grantham, Pennsylvania at Shoemaker Field.
View bracket
The 64-team bracket for the Division III Men's Soccer Championship was announced by the NCAA on Monday afternoon. The winner of this matchup will go on to face the winner of Williams College vs. New York University in the Second Round on Sunday, November 13th at the same location.
Franciscan is making its first trip to the NCAA Men's Soccer Championship. The 2022 Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) Championship was the first conference championship won by the Barons over their 15th season of Division III competition.
We are very excited to be the first soccer team at Franciscan to win a conference championship and play in the NCAA Tournament. The goal of every team when the season starts is to play in the NCAA Tournament and I'm excited that our team is going to get to experience it. They have earned it.
--Head Coach Brent Ridenour
Franciscan enters the NCAA Tournament with a 12-3-5 record with a 6-2-2 mark in the PAC. They earned the #2 seed in the PAC at the conclusion of conference play to earn a bye into the PAC Semifinals. Franciscan was able to advance past Geneva in a shootout after tying by a score of 3-3 through two overtimes. They then defeated Bethany in the PAC Championship at home to avenge their loss to them last season in the championship.
Nick Miller leads the Barons with 23 points with nine goals and five assists.
Jax Mautone has started in all 20 games as the goalkeeper, as he has recorded seven shutouts while saving 91 shots.
Messiah enters the NCAA Tournament with a nearly perfect record 19-0-1, including an 8-0 record in conference play. They are currently the #1 team in the nation according to the latest United Soccer Coaches' Poll. In the final NCAA Regional Ranking on October 30th, they were the top-ranked team in Region V. This is their 32nd trip to the NCAA National Tournament, as they hold a 92-18-5 record since 1982 over their previous 31 trips. They have made the NCAA National Finals 11 times, all of which they have won. This season's team has been led offensively by Matt McDonald, who has scored 21 goals in 20 games to have a team-high 48 points. Their fifth-year goalkeeper, Jared Pavlovich has 20 saves on the season, as he holds a .690 save percentage. As a team, the Falcons have outscored their opponents by a margin of 87-12.
Second-round winners will advance to one of four sectional sites Nov. 18-19 or 19-20. Winners of the four sectionals will advance to the national semifinals, which take place Dec. 1 at Kerr Soccer Stadium in Salem, Virginia, with Old Dominion Athletic Conference and the City of Salem serving as hosts. The national championship game will be played Dec. 3.
Men's Soccer ID Camp
Franciscan Men's Soccer is excited to offer an ID Camp for aspiring college athletes on Sunday, November 20th, 2022. Participants will have the opportunity to receive training from the men's soccer coaching staff, as well as interact with current players. Players will participate in a typical Franciscan training session and gain an understanding of the competitive and challenging environment of collegiate athletics. For more information click here
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