Preview - Franciscan Men's Lacrosse Senior Day

4/10/2026 5:00:00 PM

Game #13 - Senior Day
Franciscan (5-7 | 2-3 PAC) vs. Bethany (1-11 | 0-5 PAC) 
Saturday, April 11th | 6:00 p.m.
Trinity Health System Field | Steubenville, OH


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The Latest
- Westminster spoiled Joseph James' return to the lineup on Wednesday by defeating the Barons 17-9
- James had an impressive performance, scoring seven goals and one assist
- That is the seventh time in his career that he has scored seven or more goals in a game
- Charles Wilson added the remaining two goals
- The Barons dropped to seventh in the PAC standings
- They will face the last place Bethany Bison at home for Senior Day on Saturday

Scouting the Bison
- Bethany comes into this matchup 1-11, with a 0-5 PAC record
- The Bison have struggled on both ends of the ball this season
- They are last in the PAC in goals scored (50) and ninth in goals allowed (211)
- They have the worst scoring margin in the conference at -13.4
- They have only scored above 10 goals once this season, and have been shut out twice
- Senior midfielder Justice Smith has done the bulk of their scoring with 18 goals and five assists

Matchup History
- Franciscan is 6-8 all-time against Bethany
- The Barons have won the last four matchups after losing the previous five
- Last season, the Barons won a back-and-forth 16-13 contest
- Joseph James led the way with six goals, and Nathaniel Carter added two goals and three assists
- This will be the first time these two teams have met in Steubenville since the 2023 season

Around the League
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Offense Doing Work
- Franciscan is fourth in the PAC in goals per game (12.75) and has scored 20+ goals in three of the 11 games this season.
- They lead the PAC in shot percentage at .335.
- With 481 ground balls so far, the Barons have the second-most in the conference.
- Pio Kirk is sixth in the PAC in points per game (3.09) and fifth in assists per game (1.55)
- Ayden Burke is ninth in the PAC in points per game (2.92)

The Seniors
- Thomas Leblanc, a short stick defensive midfielder, enters Senior Night in his second season with the program after transferring in
- In his two seasons, he has played in 24 games, starting 14 of them
- He has recorded four goals, four assists, 46 caused turnovers, and 90 ground balls
- Ayden Burke, an attacker, is also in his second season with the program
- He has played 20 games, starting 14 of them
- He has recorded 31 goals, 14 assists, two game-winning goals, and 43 ground balls
- Luke Schauble, a defender, has played all four seasons at Franciscan
- He has played in 46 games, starting seven, and has recorded 35 ground balls, 18 caused turnovers, and one goal in his career

Freshman Putting up Points
- First-year players have almost 40% of all goals and assists this season for the Barons.
- Pio Kirk leads the way with 33 points, including 17 goals and 17 assists. 
- He also leads the team in man-up goals with four and is second on the team with 50 ground balls.

Defense Making Plays
-Thomas LeBlanc leads the team in caused turnovers (35) and ground balls (66)
- Leblanc is 13th in NCAA Division III in caused turnovers per game (2.92)
- John Kirk is third in the PAC in save percentage at .551. His 15.18 saves per game are the third-most in the conference.
- Kirk earned PAC Defensive Player of the Week honors after recording 12 saves and only allowing three goals against Hiram
- He was the first Baron to win PAC weekly honors since Joseph James won Offensive Player of the week on February 23rd

The All-American
- Joseph James has accumulated 238 points so far, the most in program history by a Baron. That is tied for the fifth most by a player in PAC history with Jordan Billet '24 of Saint Vincent 
- He has 161 goals in just 35 games played, which is the most in program history. That is the 5th most scored by a PAC player. He is approaching Tyler Britton '25 of Bethany in fourth with 168 goals in the PAC Record Book.
- James is also the program leader in assists with 77. 

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