Nov. 17, 2002
MILWAUKEE - Top-seeded and eighth-ranked UW-Milwaukee (18-1-1) blanked Cleveland State 8-0 Sunday afternoon to win the Horizon League championship. Playing on their home field, the Panthers claimed the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. With the loss, the Vikings' best season in over a decade comes to an end at 10-11-0.
UWM extended the nation's longest winning streak to 18 games with a six-goal barrage in the second half. CSU senior goalkeeper Josip Novkovic (Euclid, Ohio/Lake Catholic) kept the match respectable in the opening stanza, making seven stops - many in one-on-one situations. He finished with a career-high 12 saves.
Seniors Joachim Walker (Bay Village, Ohio/Bay) and Adam Musser (Hubbard, Ohio/Hubbard) each earned a spot on the All-Tournament team.
Picked to finish eighth in the preseason coaches' poll, the second-seeded Vikings had advanced to their first-ever conference tournament championship match. In addition, the 10 wins are the most for a CSU team since the 1990 squad finished with a 12-6-2 mark.
