Saint Francis Men's Soccer Seeks First 2025 Home Win Against Bucknell

Men's Soccer | 9/22/2025 10:02:00 AM

OPENING PITCH VS BUCKNELL
Saint Francis and Bucknell have faced off 18 times since 2005, with the Red Flash holding a narrow 9–8–1 advantage in the all-time series. The Red Flash have momentum on their side, winning the last four meetings, including a decisive 3–0 road victory in Lewisburg on September 7, 2024. That win marked their largest margin of victory in the series.

At home, Saint Francis is 5–3 all-time against the Bison and earned their most recent win in Loretto with a 1–0 result in 2023. The series has been closely contested, with the Red Flash outscoring Bucknell 23–22 across all matchups.

This season, Saint Francis returns to Stokes Soccerplex still looking for its first home win of 2025. Coming off a tough 2–0 loss at Duquesne, the Red Flash will look to lean on their recent series success against the Bison to spark momentum before conference play begins.

THE WORD ON THE BISON
Bucknell carries a 4-1-2 overall record and a 1-0-1 mark in Patriot League play into Sunday's matchup. The Bison most recently battled Colgate to a scoreless draw, stretching their unbeaten streak to three matches (2-0-1).

Junior Jack Lucas leads the attack with four goals and one assist, while Zane Domsohn has added three tallies. Freshman Jakub Samelko and veteran Jackson Sullivan have each contributed two goals apiece, and six other Bison players have recorded at least one point.

Between the posts, Freddie Lapworth has played every minute, posting a 1.43 goals-against average with 24 saves and one shutout. Anchoring the back line, David Krumov, Ben Sheffield, and Sullivan have all logged more than 480 minutes through seven contests.

Offensively, Bucknell has outscored its opponents 15–10, highlighted by a 4–2 win over Old Dominion and a 2–0 clean sheet at Lafayette. The Bison are unbeaten at home (2–0–0) and own quality non-conference results against Hofstra and Maryland.

LAST TIME WE MET
Saint Francis rolled to a commanding 3–0 victory at Bucknell on September 7, 2024. Fabian Wagner opened the scoring in the 20th minute with his third goal of the season, followed by a strike from Joschi Schelb just before halftime to double the lead. Freshman Rodrigo Mendes added his first Division I goal in the 77th minute to seal the win.

The Red Flash attack was well-balanced, with Schelb, Mikey Walenchok, and Parker Brennan each recording assists — the first career points for both Walenchok and Brennan. Goalkeeper Milo Risenhoover posted the first clean sheet of his career, making three saves to backstop the victory. Overall, Saint Francis outshot the Bison 9–8 and controlled the tempo to earn its second win of the 2024 season.

NEXT TIME OUT
Saint Francis opens NEC play on Sunday, September 28, with a 1:00 p.m. showdown at Le Moyne. The Red Flash will travel to Syracuse aiming to start their conference slate on the front foot and make an early statement at Ted Grant Field.

LAST TIME OUT
Saint Francis fell 2–0 at Duquesne. Freshman goalkeeper Diego Garciarena stood tall to keep the match level through the first half, while Álvaro Planas and Nathan Katari recorded the Red Flash's two shots.

NEC HONORS
Jonah Wolf was recognized as an NEC Prime Performer of the Week on Sept. 15. Wolf turned in a standout performance in Saint Francis' 3–3 draw at Loyola Maryland, recording his first career goal and adding an assist.

PRESEASON POLL
Saint Francis men's soccer was picked fifth in the NEC Preseason Poll. Mercyhurst, which won the NEC regular season, and LIU, which won the NEC Tournament, have been selected as co-preseason favorites after LIU earned three first-place votes and Mercyhurst garnered five. FDU picked up the remaining two top votes, while Le Moyne, Saint Francis, Stonehill, New Haven, Howard, Chicago State, and CCSU rounded out the poll. Mercyhurst and New Haven are both ineligible for the postseason.

INTERNATIONAL FLARE
Head coach Mads Kaiser has nine players that have come from outside the United States: Volkan Celikkol (Turkey), Alex De Nittis(Germany), Harry Elmore (England), Alejandro Escobar (Columbia), Diego Garciarena (Paraguay), Álvaro Planas(Spain), Julian Quiroga(Bolivia), Harvey Skurek (England), Mika Wernicke (Germany) and Jonah Wolf (Germany).

ABOUT THE COACH
Mads Kaiser begins his third season as the Red Flash men's soccer head coach. In his first season, Saint Francis was the only NCAA Division I team to finish undefeated with a 7-0-8 record and won the NEC regular season. Saint Francis is 14-7-10 overall and 10-2-3 in NEC play. The Red Flash hosted an NEC Semifinals Game in his first two years. He was an assistant in Loretto for two seasons prior to his elevation as head coach.

Print Friendly Version