ROCK ISLAND, Ill. - The 25th-ranked Ashford University (17-0-2 overall) men's soccer team advanced to the semifinals of the Midwest Collegiate Conference Tournament by eliminating St. Ambrose University, 2-0, on Sunday at Ericson Field.

The still undefeated Saints came into the tournament as the top seed and will now face No. 4 seed Mt. Mercy College, which beat Clarke College this afternoon in a shootout.

SAU's season comes to a close with a 4-15-1 overall record.

Ashford junior goalkeeper Nick Roman of Belvidere, Ill., recorded his 10th shutout of the season in net while making three saves, including a pair of critical, game-saving stops in the second half.

Senior defender/forward Eddie Garza of Rockford, Ill., provided both assists to goals by frontliners Nick De Backer of Antwerp, Belgium, and Vedran Ilic, also of Rockford, Ill.

"We knew coming in that St. Ambrose wasn't going to lay down and fold and they were scrappy out there," AU Head Coach Richard Markham said. "We came in not talking about the possibility of an upset. I think we might have wore them down a little bit in the second half, but we missed some opportunities in the first half that we needed to capitalize on."

"It feels good to get that win in the first round because each game can be the end of your season," Roman added. "We just have to keep our eye on the prize and play well for a chance to get to nationals."

Roman and the Saints beat the Fighting Bees for the second time this year and it took another balanced, all-around effort to get the job done, this time in the postseason.

Ashford brought out a strong contingent to the campus of Augustana College and the fan base rallied to the Saints' cause while weathering some chilly temperatures in the bleachers.

The versatile Garza set the table for De Backer and Ilic in the second half. He blasted a shot that was initially blocked but De Backer cleaned up the rebound to put away the game winner in the 62nd minute.

From the left back side, Garza fought off an SAU defender for possession of the ball and pulled Fighting Bees' goalkeeper Justin Harper away from his position on goal. With Harper sucked in, Garza centered to a wide-open Ilic for the score with five minutes left in regulation.

Roman mentioned he had a bad dream the night before about the game, but it would be impossible to tell from the way he covered ground in goal. Ashford's defense again limited offensive chances for St. Ambrose.

He saved a rocket shot by SAU's Matt Kraciun, going airborne with fingertips fully extended to deflect the shot over the crossbar. Roman then stoned Simon Murphy streaking down the left side in the 80th minute.

"I thought I saw the ball come through a hole and stopped far enough to make sure I covered my angles," said Roman of Kraciun's shot attempt. "It feels awfully good though and I owe a lot of it to the defense in front of me."

"Nick Roman was outstanding today and made several saves that showed why he is the best goalkeeper in our conference," Markham said. "We asked him to step up and make that one big, game-saving save, and he did just that."

The Saints had a double-overtime tie in the regular season against the Mustangs of Mt. Mercy , their semifinal opponent on Sunday. Ashford will host the match again at Ericson Field as the higher seed.

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