Feb. 12, 2003
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The Series
Beginning tonight, Cleveland State will play four of its final five Horizon League contests away from home. Youngstown State leads the all-time series by a 26-11 margin but the teams have traded wins for the last five seasons, with each squad defending its home court. However, the Vikings have won just twice in 15 tries in Youngstown, last winning at the Beeghly Center on Jan. 8, 1994.
The First Time Around
Cleveland State snapped a five-game losing streak in emphatic fashion, routing Youngstown State 81-44 on Jan. 8 in Goodman Arena. The game was over early as the Penguins missed their first nine shots and fell behind 11-0 after four minutes.
CSU knocked down 51.4 percent of its shots in the first half as the Vikings extended their lead to 49-23 at the break. YSU shot just 20.7 percent for the game (the lowest field goal percentage ever in a Horizon League contest) en route to suffering the fourth-largest margin of defeat in school history. In addition, CSU also tied the mark for rebounds in a league contest with 62.
Senior guard Erika Roudebush finished with team-highs of 19 points and eight assists. Junior forward Ashley Schrock tallied eight points, six assists and a career-best 12 rebounds, while junior forward Shannon Sword came off the bench to record 16 points and six rebounds. Sophomore guard Maria Rickards added a career-high 12 points.
Sophomore center Jen Perugini paced the Penguins with 11 points and seven rebounds, while sophomore guard Jessica Olmstead added nine points and a career-best 10 rebounds.
Roudebush Takes Over At The Point
The departure of sophomore Nikki Perkins has forced senior Erika Roudebush to assume most of the point guard duties. Roudebush made her debut at the point on Jan. 8 against Youngstown State and has played spectacularly in the 10 games since, leading the Vikings to five wins. During that span, she is averaging 18.0 ppg and 5.1 apg.
Schrock Hits The Floor & Boards Equally Hard
Junior forward Ashley Schrock is leading the team this season in floor burns and rebounds. At 5-11, Schrock paces the team with 167 rebounds and is third in the Horizon League at 8.0 rpg. In addition, the team's biggest hustler has topped the Vikings in rebounds 11 different times this season and is tied for fourth in the league with four double-doubles.
Up Next
Following tonight's contest, the Vikings will host intrastate rival Wright State on Saturday, Feb. 15 at 1:00 p.m.
