#1 Franciscan 2, #3 Grove City 1

Starting XI
Zachary Muldoon, Kolbe Rice, Joseph St. George, Augustine Rubino, Anthony Venditti, Jonathan Schriner, Julien Freeman, Joshua Atkinson, Lucas Cross, Ryan Miller, & Goalkeeper - Aiden Miller 

How It Happened 
    The regular season matchup between these two teams was a hotly contested and very physical game. In the regular season meeting, the Wolverines looked strong early dominating ball possession, but as the halves would wear on and legs tired, the Barons disciplined system slowly took over. Tonight's game played out very similar. 
    In the opening minutes, the Wolverines won a lot of 50/50 balls, and were flying around the field. The Barons held back the charge and weathered the volleys from the Wolverines. As time dragged forward, the discipline and system started to gain the upper hand. runs went deeper into the zone and the midfielders crept forward into the attacking zone. Eventually, the forwards broke through. Freeman made a run and received the ball from St. George just after a Wolverine restart. Freeman beat the keeper and put the Barons in their all-to-familiar spot of leading 1-0. 
    They went into the half break feeling great about having a lead, but understanding that it was far from enough to be comfortable against the Wolverines. 
    To start the second half the Wolverines held a few starters off the field. They ended up coming in later in the half. It seemed that maybe the Wolverine coach was onto what we've noticed in this matchup regarding an early advantage that slowly decays as legs grow tired. If that was his strategy it seemed like a decent idea albeit a risky one. That risk cost them almost immediately. Just one minute into the half, the Barons had possession in the attacking end. They were awarded a corner kick which Grove City quickly cleared. However, Atkinson quickly wrangled in the clear attempt out near midfield. As the Wolverines, were stepping forward, Atkinson served it back into the box. Aidan Henninger skied a full head above everyone else and headed the ball at the net. The keep having no idea which way the ball was going to go was frozen still. Henninger's header effortlessly flew by the keeper and put the Barons up 2-0. 
    Grove City answered back on a suspicious and questionable call. The Wolverines had a corner kick. The ball landed in front of the net at the feet of a multitude of players. After some shuffling and a few whiffed kicks, Wolverines' Hudson got his foot on it and bounced a shot around a few people and just passed A. Miller. Miller fell sideways trying to make the save. He fell on it as the ball crossed the goal line. However, he and many other Baron defenders felt strongly that the save was made. Official ruled in favor of Grove City and they became within one goal with 30 minutes remaining.
    As time got closer to zero the Barons hunkered into their defense more and more. At one point late in the half the Barons had a free kick in the attacking end. They sent only their three forwards into the box leaving everyone else back in the midfield. There were numerous close calls and bated breath moments, but some star defensive performances from Atkinson, R. Miller, A. Miller, Rice, and Muldoon saved the Barons from a few Wolverine scoring opportunities. 
    The late game subs from the Wolverines almost paid off many times, but as regulation expired, the Barons were still leading and became the 2024 PAC Champions. 

Inside the Numbers  
-Barons scored two goals off 3 SOG
-A. Miller recorded 8 saves
-Atkinson's assist is his first career point

Who's Next? 
Franciscan earned the PAC automatic qualifying bid into the NCAA Divsion III Championship Tournament. The bracket will be announced on Monday at 1:30 p.m. on ncaa.com. First and second round matchups are scheduled for Saturday-Sunday November 16-17.

Men's Soccer Fall ID Camp - MOVED TO MONDAY
Franciscan Men's Soccer is excited to offer an ID camp for aspiring college athletes on Monday, November 18th. The camp is open to athletes entering 9th-12th grade this Fall. Participants will have the opportunity to receive training from the men's soccer coaching staff as well as interact with current players. Campers will participate in a typical Franciscan training session and gain an understanding of the competitive and challenging environment of collegiate athletics. For more information and to register click here

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