When Brian Baharian arrived at the University of Massachusetts Boston after two years at the University of Maine, he was looking to find his way.

A lacrosse stick helped him get there.

Baharian had discovered his passion for lacrosse at Weymouth South High, where he played on the school’s first varsity team as a sophomore in 1987. At Maine, he focused solely on academics, but never entirely felt comfortable on the Orono campus. He left, and after a semester off, enrolled at UMass-Boston.

Baharian then compiled two of the most dominant seasons in the history of the UMB program, recording 116 career points. In 2014, he was inducted into the university’s athletic hall of fame.

“I was flattered and honored,’’ said Baharian, a 1997 graduate.

“When I got the call, one of the first things I thought of was how thankful I am to the school. Obviously lacrosse was a lot of fun, but the school helped me to find new direction and fulfill my goals.’’

These days, Baharian is executive director of a group that provides subsidized housing for senior citizens in Quincy. He and wife, Rebecca, live in Weymouth with their two sons, Kyle (13) and William (11).

As a high school junior, Baharian led Weymouth South, in its second year as a program, to the EMassfinal before losing to Concord-Carlisle. His senior year, the Wildcats were bumped in the semifinals.

“In my opinion we were the best team in the state,’’ said Baharian.

At UMass-Boston, Baharian was a Pilgrim League Southeast Division and all-New England honoree in 1996, when he was also selected to compete in the USILA North/South all-star game.

Baharian registered 35 assists his senior year, and still ranks in the top 15 in program history for career points. In 1995 he scored five goals in one quarter against American International College (only one player has scored more). And his 12 man-up goals that spring is still the third-most during a single season.

He also suited up against his brother, Brad, who attended Clark University. The Baharian brothers each scored, but UMass prevailed, 11-3.

“We had the better team, but I always thought that Brad was the better player,’’ he said. “It was the only time I played against him.’’ (Brad’s 65 career goals places him ninth on Clarks' career scoring list).

Baharian said that serving as a team captain in high school and college helped him to develop skills that he uses today.

“Aside from teamwork and leadership skills, athletics taught me how see the strengths in different people,’’ he said.

“Nobody is equally skilled at all things, so you need to put people in the position where they will succeed, which helps your team to succeed.’’

John Johnson can be reached at at jjohnson49@comcast.net.