Franciscan 12, Wabash 18

Franciscan Starters 
Joseph James, Ayden Burke, Eli Everts, Pio Kirk, Michael Brox, Luke Reimer, Thomas LeBlanc, Joe Delee, Dean Patterson, and Goalie - John Kirk 

How It Happened 
On a blustery day in Steubenville, Franciscan took on Wabash for the first time in program history. A nice crowd came out to Trinity Health System Field for a great back-and-forth game. 

The Barons scored first off the stick of Charles Wilson to take a 1-0 lead. Joseph James added a pair of tough goals, and Ayden Burke scored one, as the Barons improved on their lead. The Little Giants added a pair of goals before the end of the first quarter to set the score at 4-3. Wilson and James scored another goal in the second to add to the lead, but Wabash rallied back to take their first lead of the day at 7-6. Burke added a goal late to give us a tie game at halftime.

Both teams scored early in the third quarter, but Wabash slowly took control by winning faceoffs and successful clears. With three minutes left in the third quarter, Pio Kirk scored to pull the Barons within one of the lead at 10-9. Over the next nine minutes, Wabash scored six unanswered goals to take a commanding lead. Eli Everts and Wyatt Balger added late goals, but the Little Giants would be victorious. 

Inside the Numbers 
- James led all players with five goals.
- Wabash took 67 shots.
- John Kirk had 22 saves.
- Wabash was a perfect 17-17 on clears.
- There was just one penalty. The Barons scored on the lone power play.

Up Next
Franciscan will remain at home to take on Mount Union on Wednesday. They are 1-3 all-time against the Purple Raiders. The last time that the game was played in Steubenville, the Barons won by a score of 14-12. Joseph James and Samuel Marshall each scored four times to build an early lead, and held on to win that game in 2024. 

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