LEXINGTON ? Kentucky claimed its fourth Mid-America Conference championship on Sunday afternoon and earned the No. 1 seed in the conference tournament which begins Nov. 5 in Kalamazoo, Mich.

The Wildcats (9-4-3, 4-1-1 MAC) won the MAC title for the fourth time in five years, including the second in a row. Kentucky needed a loss by Northern Illinois, who entered Sunday?s contest with a half-game lead in the standings, and got it as the Huskies dropped a 2-1 decision to Akron on Sunday.

?We are very excited to have won the conference,? said Kentucky coach Ian Collins. ?We wish it wouldn?t have come to waiting on another game, but we?ll take it. Our guys worked extremely hard all year to win the MAC and it?s a great accomplishment for them.?

Friday night, Kentucky forced a 1-1 draw against the Zips to set the stage for Sunday. It was the first time the Wildcats had not lost on the road to Akron in five trips.

?We were hoping to get the win and seal the deal Friday, but it didn?t happen,? Collins said. ?I was still very pleased with the effort and the result. Akron is always a tough place to play and our guys left it all on the field.?

With the conference championship and the No. 1 seed, Kentucky earns a first-round bye in the tournament and the chance to host the tournament final. The Wildcats will face the winner of the game between the fourth and fifth seeded teams, which will likely be host Western Michigan and Marshall.

With a win in its tournament opener, Kentucky would host the MAC Tournament championship game, which would likely be played on Friday, Nov. 12. The winner of the tournament receives an automatic invitation to the NCAA Tournament.

?It is a huge advantage for us to possibly play the tournament championship at home,? said Collins, whose team had a 6-2-2 home record this season. ?It would be a huge advantage with the NCAA Tournament bid on the line.?

Kentucky has won three MAC Tournament titles since 1999.