MARSHALL — A pair of first half goals lifted host Marshall to a 2-0 win over Niles in the second round of the Big 16 Conference Tournament on Thursday.

Marshall scored in the eighth and 35th minutes to complete the scoring.

The Vikings (9-6-2) were outshot 13-8 in the match with Ryan Casey and Derek Arguello combining for 10 saves.

“We didn’t play real well tonight,” Niles coach Jerry Holtgren said. “The first 20 minutes we had some decent combination play and worked the ball, but we didn’t play how we needed to for the duration. As a team, we are at our best when we use the width to spread the field. We let Marshall play long ball, and didn’t counter by playing wide and attacking the corners.

“Jacob Stanage played well on defense and Kassim Dafa saved a goal by clearing it off the line. We have a week and a half to pull things together for districts. We have what it takes to compete for the title. We just have to play in our system and find ways to score,” he added.

The Niles JV were defeated 4-2 after leading 2-0 at halftime.

Niles will host the next round of the tournament on Tuesday. The JV match will begin at 4 p.m. with the varsity match slated for 5:45 p.m.

Niles…0

Marshall…2

Halftime score

Marshall 2, Niles 0

First half

M – 8th minute

M – 35th minute

Shots on goal

Niles 8

Marshall 13

Saves

Niles 10 (Ryan Casey, Derek Arguello)

Marshall 6

Varsity record

Niles 9-6-2