Steubenville, Ohio - The highly anticipated Allegheny Rugby Union (ARU) clash of heavyweights did not disappoint on Franciscan's Homecoming weekend. With a large crowd, one of the biggest in the last 5 years, braving a slight wind with a chill in the air, the Barons ruggers faced off against the reigning ARU champs, Slippery Rock University. The last time these two teams met was for the ARU championship, which was won by Slippery Rock. Determined to redeem themselves from their 0-2 record against SRU last year, the Barons looked forward to the opportunity to assert themselves in the ARU conference. After a month-long hiatus due to a pulled hammy suffered against Christendom, All-American John Thibault made his conference debut taking over the fullback duties with Aidan Gibbons not available for the match. Coach Jason Adams and the leadership council decided to move winger Sebastian Bise to flanker to get his speed and willingness to tackle into the lineup due to an injury to starting flanker Anthony Chipps.

Franciscan was set to receive the opening kickoff and right away they made a mistake of trying to run a few phases instead of kicking out of their zone. A knock by the Barons gave SRU a chance to capitalize on it in their red zone and capitalize they did, taking an offload to the left and the Rock player going in untouched for their try, a minute and 40 seconds into the match. A missed conversion kept the score at 0-5 SRU. The score remained 0-5 as both teams were intent on establishing their will and territory with punishing runs, and excellent defense. SRU had more command of the phases at the early outset of the match, but the Barons were able to keep the pace and not relent to the pressure. Both teams suffered turnovers and penalties through the first 20 minutes, with nerves surely frayed. The Barons were able to have an amazing 5 minute defensive stand at their own tryline (goal line in football), denying SRU from adding to their lead. After a turnover, Franciscan's #9, Vincent Prezzia, who has been instrumental to the team's success thus far this season, chipped a grubby kick through the Rock's defense and Thibault, who else?, was able to outrun the opposition to gather the ball and make a cutback to shake a defender and he was off on his patented 60 yard gallop for his first try of his season. By dotting the ball down in the middle of the try line, it lined up for an easy conversion for John Bateman, who took over kicking duties for the absent Gibbons. With Franciscan up 7-5, both teams continued to trade haymakers and jabs, both teams hitting the canvas for the 10 counts but both teams getting back up to keep the jousting. Neither team could get points off of turnovers or penalties. With zero time left on the clock, Thibault corralled a kick into the try zone by SRU and booted a kick of his own, to the far sideline, where his kick bounced in the hands of his running mate, Andrew Normandin, and Normandin was off like a rocket as he scored the second try for the Barons to give them a 12-5 lead with the missed conversion. The whistle blew and both teams were able to get a breather and talk over things.

The second half was more of the same for both teams as they each tried to gain field position and maintain possession of the ball. Franciscan started to exert itself a little bit more in the second half and kept the ball in play on SRU's side of the field. Both teams still couldn't string together more than 4 or 5 phases before turning the ball over to the other team. Franciscan was awarded a penalty and elected to kick for points to give them a two-possession lead. Bateman slotted in the kick for 3 points and a 15-5 lead. Shortly thereafter, Thibault made a nice play to stay on his feet until support arrived to set up the ruck. This allowed Prezzia to send a pass out to Bateman as he placed a beautifully kicked ball over the Rock's defender, as the ball took a bounce over the defender's head and into the speedy Bise's hands as he never broke stride and raced to the try with the biggest play of the game, emphatically shutting the door on any comeback attempt by Slippery Rock. With Bateman's conversion, the score was 22-5 Franciscan. With about 10 minutes left in the match, Slippery Rock managed to move the ball up field and were close to scoring a try but were upheld in the try zone. With zero time left, the whistle blew, and the celebration was on. It was a great "monkey off their shoulder" moment for the boys in green and gold as they have focused on this match since August.

The Barons came to play and played great defense and kept their poise. Sebastian Bise won the Golden Man of the Match with his tenacious tackling, playing a new position for the first time, and scoring the try that put away SRU. The DAWG of the Match went to Andrew "Buffy" Normandin for his hard hitting and running to keep the SRU backline in check. They both made their mark in the match! The Barons have earned a first-round home playoff match slated for October 21st against longtime foe, Robert Morris. Kickoff time will be announced as we get closer to the date. The Franciscan rugby team would like to thank Slippery Rock for their exceptionally hard playing and playing style. The team would also like to thank all the fans that braved the chilly weather and gave the boys a boost with their cheering. The rugby team definitely fed off of the energy of the fans and we hope to have more fans for future matches. Next up on the docket is a fixture at Kenyon College on Saturday October 14th. Kickoff time is scheduled for 1pm. Go the Barons and thanks everyone for your help in making this Homecoming match a success!!

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