The Aurora University Spartan football team continued the AU dominance on homecoming weekend, defeating the Crusaders of Maranatha Bible Baptist College 35-0 on chilly afternoon at Vago Field.

The Spartans dominated the first half, jumping out to a quick 7-0 lead on the game's first possession

thanks to a senior running back Ryne Reder touchdown run of one yard.

Following a defensive stop forcing a Maranatha punt, the Spartans would increase their lead to 14-0 on

their next possession as freshman quarterback Noah Martin, making his first collegiate start, threw a three-yard touchdown pass to senior wide receiver Zach Sitter.

The second quarter saw much of the same, as Martin connected with Reder on the second play of the quarter with a 25-yard touchdown pass, increasing the Spartan lead to 21-0.

The Crusaders would go three and out on their next series, giving the Spartans solid field position at the AU 41-yard line.

The opportunistic Spartans would capitalize, as Reder scored his third touchdown of the half, this time

on a three yard run, increasing the lead to 28-0.

Each team traded punts before the Spartan defense struck. Senior linebacker Ray Boro sacked Crusader sophomore quarterback Andrew Green, forcing Green to fumble, which was quickly pounced on by senior defensive end Mike DeVries deep in Maranatha territory.

The Spartans would score their final touchdown of the half when Martin connected with senior tight end Ryan Milus on an eight-yard touchdown pass, making the score 35-0 at halftime. 

For the half, the Spartan offense amassed 289 yards of total offense, 189 yards in the air and 100 on the ground, to Maranatha's 52 yards. 

In the second half, the two teams played to a defensive struggle with the Spartan defense looking for their first shutout of the season. With the Spartans being able to make mass substitutions and having nearly their entire roster see action in the game, the Spartan defenders got the elusive first shutout of the 2009 campaign.

Offensive leaders for the Spartans included Martin, who, in his first collegiate start, completed 14 of 26 passes for 212 and three touchdowns. Reder led the Spartan rushing attack, as he ran for 93 yards on 16 carries. He had three touchdowns total, two on the ground and one on a Martin pass.

For the game, the Spartans amassed 387 yards of total offense, including 160 yards on the ground by a host of running backs.

The stingy Spartan defense stifled Maranatha's offense, allowing a mere seven first downs and held

Maranatha to 80 yards of total offense, just 1.6 yards per play. The Spartans tallied five turnovers, recovering three fumbles to go along with two interceptions. Junior defensive back Jimmy Fierro led the Spartans with eight tackles while senior linebacker Mike Budzinski added five tackles, two pass break-up and a forced fumble.

With the victory, the Spartans improve to 3-2 (1-1 NAC) while the Crusaders fall to 0-5 (0-2 NAC).

The Spartans will be in action next Saturday, October 17, when they travel to Mequon, Wisconsin to take on the Concordia University Wisconsin Falcons. Game time is set for 1:00 p.m.