Franciscan 8, Grove City 31

Franciscan Starters 
Joseph James, Ayden Burke, Eli Everts, Pio Kirk, James Masso, Michael Brox, Dean Patterson, Luke Reimer, and Goalkeeper - John Kirk

How It Happened 
   Franciscan Men's Lacrosse opened the season at Grove City on a warm Tuesday in February. The gametime temperature was over 50 degrees for this conference matchup. The Wolverines entered this meeting receiving votes in the National Top 25 poll after beating nationally ranked Ohio Wesleyan over the weekend. Grove City has not lost a PAC contest since their program's inception in 2019, and that fact reigned true today, as they secured the win.

    The Barons were able to score eight goals on the day, with six of those coming in the second half. Three goals came from Joseph James and three from Ayden Burke. Jake Parker led the Wolverines with seven goals. Freshman goalie John Kirk registered 23 saves in three quarters of play, and Mattias Bunai played between the pipes for the final quarter. 

Inside the Numbers 
- Joseph James passed Gavin Cook to sit in solo third in program history in goals scored.
- Kirk's 23 saves are the fifth most by a Baron all-time.
- Eight goals are the most the Barons have scored against Grove City in a game.
- Eli Everts and Wyatt Balger each had five ground balls.
- Joseph McCarron caused two turnovers.
- Charles Buckley won nine faceoffs.

Up Next 
Franciscan will host Hanover for the 2026 home opener on Saturday at 1:00 p.m. The Barons are 0-1 all-time against the Panthers, but they have not played them since the 2015 season. They held an 11-4 record last season, but they enter Saturday's contest with a 0-1 record in 2026. 

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