LOUISVILLE, Ky. — The Bellarmine University lacrosse team is anticipated to make a big splash in its first season in the Southern Conference, and the Knights will look to start fulfilling those expectations this weekend.

Bellarmine (1-3), which was the preseason pick to win the league championship, will open its conference slate on the road Saturday against Furman (1-4) in Paladin Stadium in Greensville, South Carolina. The game will start at 2 p.m. (ET).

Bellarmine is coming off an idle week of play after competing twice in a three-day span in the Midwest Classic Lacrosse Weekend at Owsley B. Frazier Stadium. The Knights were clipped 8-7 by Ohio State before falling 14-11 to Detroit.

In both cases, Bellarmine avoided potential routs with strong second-half surges. The Buckeyes scored seven unanswered goals in the first half to lead 7-2 at the intermission before the Knights yielded a single score after the break and put up five of their own to fall by the slimmest of margins.

The situation against the Titans was even more perilous as BU trailed 13-6 early in the fourth quarter, but the Knights regrouped to rattle off five unanswered goals in a little over five minutes to cut their deficit to two before Detroit closed out the win.

Furman is no stranger to tough luck. The Paladins suffered a 7-6 loss to Mount St. Mary's on Saturday in which the Mountaineers netted the winning goal with a shade over two minutes left. That setback followed a tight 6-4 loss to Air Force in which the game was tied 4-4 after three periods.

Furman opened the season with a 19-4 defeat at North Carolina, but the unbeaten Tar Heels are now No. 2 in the nation. The Paladins were more competitive in a 10-5 loss to Denver, which is currently ranked third. Before its three-game losing streak, Furman beat Canisius 9-8.

After the onslaught of goals by North Carolina in the opener, Furman's goal-stopping unit stiffened and the Paladins have moved into second in the Southern Conference in goals-against average at 10.66. Furman has also been sound in possessing the ball, as it leads the league in fewest turnovers per game (13.67).

Individually, Furman's offense has been led by senior midfielder Kenny Meinsen, who has deposited 11 goals. Freshman attack Jonah Moore has accumulated nine goals and six assists, while sophomore attack Robbie Betchley has chipped in seven goals. Freshman goalkeeper Reilly McDermott is second in the SoCon in both goals-against average (8.95) and save percentage (53.4).

For Bellarmine, sophomore attack Austin Shanks is the SoCon's second-most prolific scorer at 3.25 goals per game and has amassed 13 scores thus far. Shanks and sophomore attacks Tucker Ciessau (six goals, four assists) and Jack Perkins (six goals, four assists) are all ranked among the top eight in the league in points per game. Freshman goalkeeper Drew Goethals ranks second in the conference in saves per game at 12.5.

Last year, in the first meeting between the two programs, Bellarmine captured a 13-7 victory at Frazier Stadium behind two goals apiece from Shanks, Ciessau, Ryan Scinta and Brogan Hill.

Bellarmine (1-3, 0-0 SoCon) at Furman (1-4, 0-0 SoCon)
Date: Saturday, March 14
Opening face-off: 2 p.m. (ET)
Location: Paladin Stadium
Live stats
Video