SAINT LEO, Fla. — The 21st-ranked Auburn Montgomery Warhawks opened the men's soccer regular season on the road against the Saint Leo University Lions and came away with a 3-1 comeback victory over at University Turf Stadium.
 
After a scoreless opening half, the Lions scored first with a goal by Jorge Perez in the bottom left of the net to take a 1-0 lead in the 55th minute.
 
However, the Warhawks (1-0) surged ahead with back-to-back goals starting in the 60th minute as Benjamin Hoffmann netted AUM's first goal of the regular season to tie the contest.
 
Then a minute later, Sean O'Donnell scored in the bottom right corner off an assist from Robiston Lakau to take the 2-1 lead.
 
AUM put the game away in the 85th minute with a goal from Anthony Smith, assisted by Alexander Carey to push the lead to 3-1 which held as the final to clinch the season opening win for the Warhawks.
 
"I was really proud of the lads, how they dealt with adversity," said Head Coach Matt Thorne. "We were very unfortunate to go a man-down in the game. But they stuck with the game plan and worked so hard for each other. It was a great win, now we rest and go again Saturday." 

AUM outshot SLU 13-8 and finished with five shots on goal compared to two SOGs for the Lions.
 
It was a balanced attack for the Warhawks as nine players left the pitch with a shot taken during the matchup.
 
Auburn Montgomery continues the road trip Saturday, Sept. 6, to Tampa, Florida for a match against the University of Tampa Spartans starting at 10 a.m.