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Sophomore forward Bojan Kolevski tallied two goals for the Vikings in the seventh and 18th minutes of play.
Credit: Cleveland State Athletics Department
Sophomore forward Bojan Kolevski tallied two goals for the Vikings in the seventh and 18th minutes of play.

CSU men’s soccer falls to Wright State 4-3, regular season title remains undecided

WSU stunned the Vikings, scoring four goals in the second half to secure victory in CSU's final regular season game of 2021. A win would have given CSU the regular season title. Now the Vikings need Oakland to tie or lose on Nov. 3 to take the title.

Cleveland State's Vikings dropped their 2021 regular season finale to Wright State, 4-3, on Saturday, denying themselves a historic first Horizon League regular season title.

The Raiders played the spoilers, mounting a four-goal comeback in the second half. CSU must now wait for a Nov. 3 matchup between Oakland and Northern Kentucky to see whether the title is their's.

On Saturday, the Vikings were off to a strong start, netting a seventh minute goal when Pablo Kawecki sent a through ball to Bojan Kolevski for the first score of the game. Kolevski then doubled the Green and White’s advantage in the 18th minute with his second goal of the night.

Cleveland State took the 2-0 lead into the intermission despite being outshot 6-3. The Vikings held a 3-1 shots on goal lead going into halftime.

Wright State cut the deficit to 2-1 nine minutes into the second half when Reece Allbaugh's shot from the top of the box hit the crossbar and rolled in. The Raiders then tied the game in the 66th minute as Joe Kouadio crossed it from the right side and Allbaugh slotted it home.

Kawecki would put the Vikings back on top, 3-2 in the 75th minute. But WSU evened the score for a second time in the 86th minute as Brayden McNitt found the back of the net off an initial blocked shot.

The Raiders claimed their first lead of the game in the 88th minute when Allbaugh scored his third goal of the game with a shot from just outside the box.

The Vikings were unable to even the score before time expired. 90 minutes of play and a season finale title delayed, if not denied.

To claim the elusive Horizon League Regular Season Championship title, the Vikings need the Golden Grizzlies to lose or tie in their final regular game against Northern Kentucky on Wednesday, Nov. 3.

Looking to the postseason, Cleveland State is waiting to see who they will play on Nov. 11 in their Horizon League Semifinal match.