Steubenville, Ohio - The Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) released the Preseason Coaches' Poll for Men's Lacrosse on Wednesday afternoon. Franciscan was picked to finish sixth after finishing in that position last season. That would be playoff position. Six teams will make the PAC Championship Tournament, which will take place in the end of April and early May. 
 

2026 PAC Men's Lacrosse Preseason Coaches' Poll (Predicted order of finish)
School (first-place votes)	Points	2025 records
1. Grove City (9)	81	14-8, 8-0 PAC
2. Chatham (1)	70	13-6, 7-1 PAC
3. Saint Vincent	67	9-8, 6-2 PAC
4. Westminster	58	10-9, 5-3 PAC
5. Allegheny	46	8-9, 4-4 PAC
6. Franciscan	44	5-9, 3-5 PAC
7. W&J	30	5-12, 1-7 PAC
8. Bethany	24	7-10, 2-6 PAC
9. Hiram	18	3-14, 0-8 NCAC
10. Thiel	12	1-14, 0-8 PAC

 

2025 in Review
The Barons had a 5-9 record overall a season ago while battling several major injuries throughout the season. Joseph James was named Second Team All-PAC while leading the Barons in goals (52) and points (67). He led all of NCAA Division III in goals per game with 4.73. Nathaniel Carter and Dominic Miraglia were named Honorable Mention All-PAC. James Masso played the majority of the goalie minutes, but he will shift back to the field in 2026. All of the Franciscans' wins came on the road, but they look to defend home turf more in 2026, with nine games to be played at Trinity Health System Field. 

Players to Watch
Franciscan had five players listed as Players to Watch for the upcoming season. 
 
Joseph James (Jr. Herndon, Va. / The Heights School) was named Second Team All-PAC last season. While playing in just 11 games, he led the Barons with 67 points, including just 52 goals. Three of his goals were game winners. He recorded 34 ground balls and caused 12 turnovers.  

Eli Everts (So. Ypsilanti, Mich. / Father Gabriel Richard) returns in the midfield for the Barons. As a freshman, he played in all 14 games, while leading the Barons with 57 ground balls. His 14 caused turnovers were the second-most on the team. He tallied 13 goals and eight assists to have 21 points.

The other three players mentioned are new faces to the Barons. John Kirk (Fr. Rockville, Md. / The Heights School) looks to be the starting goalie for the Barons. Pio Kirk (Fr. Rockville, Md. / The Heights School) will see time on attack and in the midfield. Lastly, Dean Patterson (Jr. Endwell, N.Y. / Seton Catholic Central) looks to be a major contributor on the defensive end in his first collegiate season. 

New Faces
Coach Rosaschi brought in another large and talented class. Charles Wilson, Chris Uhlenkott, Michael Brox, JT Sebestyen, Wyatt Balger, Joe Delee, Anthony Dow, Kolbe Owen, Ignacio Sayers, Mattias Bunai, Kyson Harpster, Nolan Hosking, and Evan Long are all looking to work their way onto the field and provide much-needed depth, along with the three newcomers mentioned above.

The Favorites
Grove City is picked to repeat as PAC Champions in 2026. They earned nine of the first-place votes, and Chatham received the last first-place vote. The top six teams will make the PAC Championship Tournament and will be played between April 25th and May 2nd, with the top two teams earning byes into the Semifinal.

Up Next
The Barons open up the 2026 season at Grove City on February 17th. It will be the third game of the season for the Wolverines. The Barons are in search of their first PAC win against the Wolverines. Grove City has not lost a PAC game since the program began varsity play in 2019. The Barons will then play nine consecutive non-conference games. They will not resume PAC play until March 25th at Saint Vincent.

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