UWM Men's Soccer Releases Tough 2003 ScheduleComplete Release in PDF Format
April 2, 2003 MILWAUKEE - Winning on the road. It's one of the toughest things to do in college sports. Obviously two-time Horizon League Coach of the Year Louis Bennett wanted to test his veteran squad in 2003, as the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee men's soccer team will look to defend its back-to-back Horizon League titles with 13 road and neutral contests as UWM released its 2003 fall schedule here Wednesday (Apr. 2). "We love to play at Englemann Field but we certainly aren't afraid to test our team away from home," UWM assistant coach Stan Anderson said. "I think this team has shown some resiliency and an ability to win on the road in the past. It's just another challenge for our program." After a brief hiatus from the tournament, UWM will open up the 2003 campaign in Madison at the 2003 Rocky Rococo Classic Friday, Aug. 29 versus longtime-rival Northern Illinois. The Panthers then face a tough test on Aug. 31 with a showdown versus 2003 NCAA Tournament qualifier New Mexico. The Lobos finished last season with an 18-4-0 record and advanced to the second round of NCAA play. Milwaukee will open the home portion of the schedule Sept. 6-7 with the annual Coca-Cola Panther Invitational at Engelmann Field. The Panthers will play host to Denver on Friday (Sept. 6) before facing the Bulldogs of Alabama A&M on Sunday (Sept. 7). Alabama A&M finished the 2003 campaign 11-4-2 on the year with an RPI of 44. The Panthers will then head to Louisville, Ky., and Green Bay, Wis. for two more inseason tournaments and will face Dayton and Memphis in Louisville before playing UM-Kansas City and Vermont at the Green Bay FILA Classic Sept. 20-21. Milwaukee's last three non-conference games will all provide significant tests. The Panthers host Wisconsin on Wed., Oct. 1 before heading to 2003 NCAA Tournament qualifier Akron on Oct. 5. Milwaukee will finish the regular season at Marquette with the annual Milwaukee Cup game at Valley Fields in Milwaukee on Oct. 29. UWM will open Horizon League play on the road when they head to Cleveland, Ohio, to face Cleveland State on Sept. 26. The Engelmann Field conference opener will come Sept. 28 when the Titans of Detroit head to Milwaukee. The Panthers final home game is set for Oct. 16 versus UIC. "The game is all about challenging your team and getting better and that was our goal with this schedule," Anderson noted. "It's always good to play quality opponents both in and outside of your region and we did that with teams like New Mexico while continuing our rivalry games with Marquette and Madison.
Milwaukee will return its top three scorers and eight starters from the record-setting 2002 squad which finished the year 19-2-1 and ranked No. 17 in the final NSCAA national poll.
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