ROMEOVILLE, ILThe University of Southern Indiana men's soccer team fells short in the Great Lakes Valley Conference Championship match, 1-0, to Southern Illinois University Edwardsville in Romeoville, Illinois, Sunday afternoon.

The Screaming Eagles finish the 2002 campaign with a 12-8-1 overall record, doubling their win total from a year ago. The 12 victories also are the most by a USI team since 1991 when the Eagles won 13 matches and the GLVC championship.

After battling through a scoreless first half, the Cougars got the game winner with 17:03 to play in the match. On a restart, SIUE midfielder Matt Horan crossed the ball into midfielder Josh Hickam for the goal.

The Eagles managed 13 shots, five on goal, against SIUE, but none were able to find the back of the net. USI played without GLVC Player of the Year Greg Henry (France), who was red carded in the tie with Lewis University on Saturday.

"Both teams were tired and did not make for a lot of clear cut goal opportunities," said USI Head Coach Dan Hogan. "I felt good about going into the half tied 0-0 because we were going to get the wind. We got caught on the restart and they got the cross in for the goal."

Hogan continued, "I'm very proud of what our guys have accomplished this year. The team learned a lot this weekend and what to expect for the future."