The Aurora University men's soccer team hosted Benedictine University Thursday evening in the first round of the conference tournament. The Spartans defeated the Eagles 2-1.

THE BASICS
FINAL SCORE: Aurora University 2, Benedictine University 1
LOCATION: Montgomery, Illinois : Spartan Athletic Park
RECORDS: Aurora University 5-1-1
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
- AU got on the board early when Salvador Garcia scored unassisted to put the Spartans up 1-0 3:59 into the game.
- In the 24th minute Benedictine tied it up 1-1.
- In the 79th minute Spartan Cristian Correa would break the tie with a goal assisted by Justin Rutherford and Enrique Gonzalez.
- Spartans held on in the final 21 minutes to win and advance to the second round of the NACC Tournament.

SPARTAN STAT LEADERS
SAVES: Jalen Depenbrock (3)
GOALS: Salvador Garcia and Cristian Correa (1)
ASSISTS: Justin Rutherford and Enrique Gonzalez (1)

UP NEXT
Next action for the Spartan men's soccer team comes on Sunday, April 25 when they travel to Dominican University. Game time is set for 4:00 p.m. in River Forest, Illinois.