Nov. 22, 2008

Final Stats

Contact: Greg Murphy

MUNCIE, Ind. - Cleveland State rallied from a 17 point second half deficit, but Ball State's Emily Maggert hit a layup with five seconds left to life the Cardinals to a 61-60 win over the Vikings on Saturday night in Worthen Arena in the final round of the Preseason WNIT.

CSU slipped to 2-2 this season, while BSU improved to 2-1.

"We got off to a poor start in the first half and didn't have a lot of energy," head coach Kate Peterson Abiad said. "And that really cost us because we dug ourselves a big hole that we had to climb out of.

"We played much better in the second half and made some good passes that led to some easy baskets. The one lesson I hope we learn from this game is that we have to come out strong at the start of each and every game. We have to have intensity right from the jumpball."

Ball State took a 16-11 lead midway through the first half on a Patrice King theree-pointer, but five straight points by CSU brought the Vikings back to even at 16-16.

From there, the Cardinals closed the half on a 16-3 run to take a 32-19 lead into the locker room.

A Maggert layup to start the second half gave the Cardinals a 15 point lead and BSU pushed its advantage to 17 points (51-34) on a pair of Maggert free throws with 10:49 to play in the game.

However, CSU began to chip away at its deficit, cutting the Cardinal lead to 53-50 on a Shawnita Garland layup with 3:29 to play that capped a 17-1 Viking run. Garland sparked the run with eight points.

BSU pushed the lead back to five on a pair of free throws by Danielle Gratton, but the Vikings used a Dominique Butler layup, a three-pointer from Jessica Roque and a layup by Kailey Klein to climb back within two points (59-57) after BSU hit a pair of free throws and a layup.

Following a defensive stop, CSU got the ball to Butler who converted a layup with 47 seconds left and hit a free throw to complete a traditional three-point play and give the Vikings a 60-59 lead.

"We had drawn up a play for Kailey and she was able to get into the lane," Peterson Abiad said. "But she drew a double team and Dom was able to slide to the basket and Kailey found her for an easy look."

Butler came up with a steal on the ensuing possession, but following a missed free throw, BSU took possession of the basketball with 22 seconds left.

Porchia Green missed a three-pointer with seven seconds left, but Maggert grabbed the offensive rebound and laid it in to give BSU a 61-60 lead with five seconds to play.

"We did a really good job to force them into a shot that they probably didn't want to take," Peterson Abiad said. "But we missed a box out and they took advantage of that with an easy putback."

With a chance to win, CSU went to junior Kailey Klein, but her jumper at the buzzer would not fall and the Cardinals held on for the win. "Kailey got in the lane with two seconds left and put up a floater that just didn't fall," Peterson Abiad said.

Klein did lead the Vikings with 20 points and eight rebounds, while Butler had 15 points and five boards. Garland added 10 points and three assists for CSU, which shot .422 (25-59) from the field.

BSU held a 35-33 advantage on the boards, while hitting 22-of-50 (.440) from the field.

The Vikings will be back in action on Wednesday (Nov. 26) when CSU returns home to host Toldeo at 7:00 p.m. in the Wolstein Center.