VALPARAISO | An ugly scene played out at Brown Field during Valparaiso's 4-0 victory over Milwaukee in the first round of the Horizon League men's soccer tournament on Tuesday.
Less than a minute after Zack Stivers scored off a rebounded penalty kick to give the Crusaders a 2-0 victory in the 52nd minute of action, Valparaiso senior Steve Shively was pushed to the ground by a Milwaukee defender while chasing down a ball.
Valparaiso junior Stefan Antoijevic ran over to the aid of his teammate, and a shoving match ensued between Antoijevic, a Marquette transfer, and members of the Milwaukee team. The altercation escalated when the players started throwing punches and Valparaiso fans who were sitting behind the Milwaukee goal rushed the field to separate the players.
Players and fans began to swing at each other while others tried to dissipate the brawl. Coaches from other Valparaiso athletic teams sprinted around the field to help sort out the situation, which delayed the game for about 10 minutes.
"It was a hard foul and Stefan came over to me and then got shoved," Shively said. "That sparked everyone reacting and it got way more out of control than it needed to."
Shively stated after the game that he had been in some scuffles on the field before, but nothing quite like what happened on Tuesday.
"You just start grabbing people from both sides, trying to calm everyone down," Shively said. "I had a player wrapped up with my arms around him, just trying to show people you're not trying to fight. Some of their guys actually came up to us after the fight and said thank you for trying to calm everyone down."
Antonijevic received a red card in the match and the second team all-conference selection will have to sit out Friday's semifinal match with No. 2 Green Bay in Indianapolis. Milwaukee's Josh Barnes also received a red card because of the altercation and in the closing moments of the match, Milwaukee assistant coach Jesse Rosen was ejected.
"I didn't have the best angle on what happened, so I'll have to review the tape," Valparaiso coach Mike Avery said of the fight. "Clearly there was a foul and unfortunately the situation spilled off the field. I don't know much more."
The brawl overshadowed a dominant performance by the No. 2 Crusaders (10-6-2), who won their first Horizon League tournament match in three years. Sophomore Brendan Roth scored two goals to lead the Crusaders, including an early tally in the 7th minute of action that proved to be the match-winner.
"We just need to take this one game at a time," Roth said. "Today wasn't the prettiest, but I feel that our potential can take us places."
MEN'S SOCCER
Horizon League tournament
First round
No. 3 Valparaiso 4, No. 6 Milwaukee 0
Brendan Roth scored two goals to lead the Crusaders.
More online
For more analysis of Tuesday's altercation, check out my.nwi.com/vusports.
Horizon League Men's Soccer Postseason Awards
Player of the Year -- JC Banks (Green Bay)
Goalkeeper of the Year -- Ryan Schwarz (Valparaiso)
Local first team players -- Eric Gehrig (Loyola-Chicago/Lake Central), Ryan Schwarz (Valparaiso)
Local second team players -- Stefan Antonijevic , Adrian Ortiz, Steve Shively (Valparaiso)
