MONTGOMERY, Ill. (naccsports.org) --- Aurora University defeated Concordia University Wisconsin, 14-9, Saturday at Spartan Stadium to win the 2025 Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference (NACC) Men's Lacrosse Tournament.
The tournament title is the third in succession for the Spartans (14-5).
Aurora got the scoring started with back-to-back unassisted tallies from Ben Strub, only to see the Falcons' Preston Meier respond with a pair of goals 31 seconds apart to leave the scored tied 2-2 after one quarter.
The Spartans blew the game open in the second quarter with eight straight goals - including three from Tyler Foerstel and a pair from Griffin Joas. Reilan Pura scored off an assist from Foerstel to give Aurora a 10-2 lead with 4:21 left in the first half. CUW rallied for two goals in the final 1:06 to cut the lead to six at the halftime break.
The Falcons ticked off three more goals to kick off the second half with Max Esposito and Bryce Petersen each scoring once and assisting on another. A goal from Joas at the 8:00 mark of the third quarter stopped the CUW run. The teams traded goals to close the frame, leaving Aurora with a 12-8 advantage.
The Spartans extended the lead to five goals on a Joas unassisted tally just 1:07 into the fourth quarter. That margin held until the final minute when the teams traded late goals.
Aurora finished with a 54-34 advantage in shots, including a 32-20 edge in shots on goal. The Spartans also picked up 49 ground balls to CUW's 41, while the Falcons held a 15-11 edge in faceoff wins and converted on one of six extra-man opportunities.
Petersen and Meier both scored three goals and an assist to lead CUW offensively. Goalie Nolan O'Malley scooped up a team-best nine ground balls and made 18 saves.
Joas and Strub both scored four goals to lead Aurora, while Foerstel had three goals and an assist. Asher Deputy made 11 saves and grabbed a game-high 11 ground balls.
In addition to the tournament title, the Spartans also secured the NACC's automatic berth in the upcoming NCAA Division III Men's Lacrosse Championship.
2025 NACC Men's Lacrosse All-Tournament Team
Asher Deputy, Aurora (MVP)
Griffin Joas, Aurora
Tyler Foerestel, Aurora
Ben Strub, Aurora
Max Esposito, Concordia Wisconsin
Caleb Ruger, Concordia Wisconsin
Zach Wilder, Concordia Wisconsin
Sam Todd, Dubuque
Eric Brostek, Dubuque
Macklin Thomas, Lake Forest
Conor Murphy, Lake Forest
Jack Whalon, Benedictine
Nick Orosco, Edgewood
Kyle Johnson, Illinois Tech
Soren Savard, MSOE