Game 9
Teams: Cleveland State (1-5-2) vs. Dayton (2-6-1)
Date/Time: Tuesday, Sept. 26 | 7:00 PM
Location: Dayton, Ohio | Baujan Field
Follow: Video | Stats

Opening Whistle
Cleveland State will take a break from league play tomorrow evening as they travel to the University of Dayton for a 7 p.m. kickoff.

Last Game Out
The Vikings picked up their first league point of the year after tying Green Bay at home on Saturday, 1-1. The Phoenix opened the scoring in the 48th minute before Pablo Kawecki equalized in the 86th minute off an assist from Albert Portas. Omeed Naeemy made four saves in goal.

About Dayton
The Flyers come into the game with a 2-6-1 overall record and haven't played at home since Sept. 16, when they blanked Rhode Island, 6-0. In their most recent game, Dayton fell to Saint Joseph's 1-0. Dayton is led by Joseph Melto Quiah and Hjalti Sigurdsson, with three goals apiece. Ousseynou Cisse has a team-best three assists. Dario Caetano has two shutouts and 22 saves in goal.

Series History
This will be the eighth meeting of all time, with Cleveland State holding a 6-1 advantage. These two teams haven't met since 2016, when the Green and White blanked the Flyers, 3-0. Cleveland State last visited Dayton in 2015.

Watch Lists Times Three
Bojan Kolevski was named to three watch lists to start the 2023 campaign. The senior was recognized on the Hermann Trophy Watch List, which is the nation's highest individual honor recognizing the National Player of the Year. He was also named to the United Soccer Coaches Players to Watch list as a forward and was also named a Top 100 Player to Watch by Top Drawer Soccer.

A Look Back at Last Season
Cleveland State claimed their first-ever Horizon League Regular Season Championship after going 5-1-3 in league play. The Vikings went on to win their second Horizon League Tournament Championship and make their 10th appearance in the NCAA Tournament after beating IUPUI on Krenzler Field, 3-0 in the title contest.

For their efforts throughout the year, Sinisa Ubiparipovic was named the #HLMSOC Coach of the Year for the first time, Bojan Koevski was named the Player of the Year and Offensive Player of the Year, while the Vikings had five All-League members with three on the first team; Bojan Kolevski, Pablo Kawecki, Jannis Schmidt, and two on the second team; Hector Gomez and Uros Jevtic.

Key Returners
The Vikings return three players who received Horizon League postseason honors; senior Bojan Kolevski, senior Pablo Kawecki, and sophomore Uros Jevtic.

Preseason Poll
Cleveland State was picked to finish first in the Horizon League preseason poll, as voted on by the league's ten coaches. The Vikings finished with nine of the ten first-place votes for 99 total points. IUPUI was selected second with the final first-place vote for 80 points, and Oakland was third with 71 points. 

Up Next
Cleveland State returns home on Saturday to battle Northern Kentucky at 7 p.m. on Krenzler Field.