CLEVELAND, Ohio – Cleveland State University, in conjunction with the ASUN Conference, announced Friday afternoon that the school's lacrosse program has accepted an invitation to join the league as an affiliate member, effective July 1, 2021.
"This is such a tremendous development for CSU and Vikings lacrosse," said Director of Athletics Scott Garrett. "Conference alignment has been a strategic goal for Cleveland State since the inception of the program in 2016-17 and joining the ASUN will provide a wealth of opportunities for our student-athletes. Thank you to ASUN Commissioner Ted Gumbart, and the membership's athletics directors and lacrosse coaches, for their passion for growing the sport of men's lacrosse and their partnership in our efforts for providing student-athletes with a transformational experience."
This will be the first time that the Cleveland State lacrosse program has had a conference affiliation, as the Vikings have competed as an independent since their debut season in 2017. Cleveland State's primary athletics conference, the Horizon League, does not sponsor lacrosse.
"On behalf of my staff and our student-athletes, I want thank our administration at Cleveland State and the ASUN leadership team, for their time and effort to make our dream a reality," said lacrosse head coach Andy German. "Ever since arriving in 2015, this has been the top priority for our program and to see it come to fruition is incredibly special. We have a lot of work ahead of us this spring, but on July 1, 2021, we become proud members of the ASUN Conference and look forward to competing for our first conference championship in 2022."
Cleveland State will be one of six charter members of ASUN men's lacrosse, as the Vikings will be joined by fellow Horizon League members Detroit Mercy and Robert Morris, in addition to Air Force, Bellarmine and Utah.
The winner of the ASUN Conference will receive an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament beginning in 2022.
Cleveland State has significant familiarity with a number of its new conference brethren and has competed against all five of its new league opponents within the past two years. CSU has faced Air Force (4), Bellarmine (3), Detroit Mercy (3) and Robert Morris (2) in multiple seasons in its young program history—the Vikings are also slated to face Bellarmine, Robert Morris and Utah during the upcoming 2021 season.
The nascent Cleveland State program has shown signs of continual growth throughout its existence.
Utilizing a roster composed almost entirely of true freshmen, the Vikings capped off their debut 2017 season, a campaign in which the first-year program faced five teams that would qualify for the NCAA Tournament, with their first win over a Division I opponent. During the program's second season, the Vikings' DI win total increased to four as they faced six teams among the top 25 in the NCAA's RPI.
Noticeable improvement was on display for all to see in 2019 as Cleveland State had its finest season yet. The Vikings won seven of their final 10 games to close the year, doubling their win total from the prior season in the process. In doing so, CSU posted a winning record in just its third season of existence despite facing six teams among the top 25 in the NCAA's RPI.
Although German's debut season as head coach was much shorter than anticipated in 2020, he still helped the Vikings check off another milestone in their development. German guided Cleveland State to a 12-11 win against Air Force in late February, the first victory over a nationally ranked opponent in program history.
In the classroom, the Vikings had three student-athletes named to the President's List for Fall 2020 (3.90 GPA, minimum of 15 graded credit hours) and 37 named to the Dean's List (3.25 GPA, minimum of 12 graded credit hours). The team posted an overall GPA of 3.50 this past semester, marking the seventh consecutive semester that the program recorded a mark of 3.25 or higher.
Cleveland State recently released its 2021 schedule, which is now set to be the Vikings' final year as an independent.
Due to the ongoing pandemic, CSU will not host spectators at home lacrosse matches this season. Tickets for the 2022 season, however, are on sale now and can be purchased HERE.
Additionally, alumni, friends and fans of Cleveland State lacrosse can support the program on Cleveland State's annual Giving Day, held on February 16, 2021: www.csugivingday.com
