Nov. 12, 2009
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GAME #1
Ohio (13-18 in 2008-09) at Cleveland State (19-13)
Date: Friday, November 13, 2009
Time: 7:30 p.m. EST
Site: Goodman Arena (8,500), Wolstein Center - Cleveland, Ohio
TV: Live video streaming available online through the Horizon League Network. Links to video available at CSUVikings.com.
Audio: Live audio available online with HLN broadcast. (Nick Camino)
Series: OU leads, 13-5
Last Mtg: @OU 76, CSU 66 (12/19/08)
Promos: Free Magnet schedules to the first 1,000 fans courtesy of IHOP.
Tickets: General Admission: $8
Children under 4: FREE
Groups of 10+: $5 per person
CSU single game and season tickets are available by calling the Wolstein Center Ticket Office at (216) 687-4848 or by contacting Ticketmaster.
SETTING THE SCENE: After playing two exhibition games, Cleveland State is ready to take the court for its regular season opener on Friday, Nov. 13, at 7:30 p.m. against Ohio in the Wolstein Center. The first 1,000 fans through the gates will receive a free magnet schedule for the 2009-10 season. The Vikings return four starters and eight letterwinners from last year's squad that won 19 games for the second consecutive season and finished a program-best third place in the Horizon League. Ohio returns three starters and nine letterwinners from last year's squad that went 13-18 and finished in third place in the MAC East Division.
PREVIEWING CLEVELAND STATE: With four starters and eight letterwinners back from last year's 19 win team, seventh year head coach Kate Peterson Abiad has her most experienced squad to date. Headlining the list of returnees is senior guard Kailey Klein (16.9 ppg, 4.3 rpg, 3.1 apg) who was selected to the preseason All-Horizon League first team for the third straight year and was the preseason Player of the Year. Joining her in the starting backcourt are senior Jessica Rouqe (10.8, 2.8, 2.7) and junior Shawnita Garland (12.4, 4.3, 2.8 spg), who joined Klein on the preseason all-league first team. Senior Angel Roque (4.2, 2.0, 2.8) gives the Vikings an experienced point guard, while freshman Honesty King will slowly work her way into the rotation after redshirting last season. Sophomore Janelle Adams (2.7, 2.1) is an athletic wing-forward who will be counted on to fill a bigger role this season and sophomore guard Takima Keane (1.8, 0.5) will attempt to build upon last season. Senior Stephaine Crosley (4.7, 6.3) is the most experienced post player on the roster after starting 31 games last season and is expected to be joined in the starting lineup by freshman Shalonda Winton, an athletic player who can finish at the basket. Sophomore Destinee Blue (2.7, 2.1) provides CSU with a low post presence off the bench, while freshman Kaila Montgomery is working her way back from a knee injury and should be ready to contribute in December.
HEAD COACH Kate Peterson ABIAD: Kate Peterson Abiad is in her seventh season as the head coach of the Vikings and claims an overall record of 66-114 (.367) after leading the Vikings to 19 wins in each of the last two seasons. The sixth head coach in school-history, Peterson Abiad spent six years as an assistant coach at Wisconsin, serving as the recruiting coordinator starting in 1998 after working as an assistant coach at Eastern Illinois (1993-97) and Indiana (1991-93). A 1991 graduate of Wisconsin-Stevens Point, Peterson Abiad earned Kodak All-America honors her senior season after setting the NCAA Division III record for three-point field goals per game at 3.85.
FIRST CSU HOOPS LUNCHEON WAS ON TUESDAY: The inaugural CSU Hoops Luncheon Series, presented by SportsTime Ohio and WKNR, had its debut on Tuesday, Nov. 10 with Viking basketball fans having the opportunity to get monthly updates from CSU basketball head coaches Kate Peterson Abiad and Gary Waters throughout the 2009-10 season. The luncheon took place at 11:45 a.m. on the fifth floor Viking Loge of the Wolstein Center annex. Future luncheons will be held on Thursday, Dec. 17, Tuesday, Jan. 26 and Tuesday, Feb. 23. Cost of admission is $12, which includes a buffet luncheon and beverages. Tables of eight are available for $96. Reservations can be made by calling (216) 687-5454.
VIKINGS SECOND IN PRESEASON POLL: Cleveland State was picked to finish second in the Horizon League Preseason poll, the highest finish in the poll in school history. The Vikings received four first place votes and 243 points to finish behind Green Bay, who earned 266 points and 19 first place votes. Butler picked up three first place votes and 234 points to finish third, while UIC was fourth with 160 points and Milwaukee fifth with 155 points and the final first place vote.
KLEIN NAMED PRESEASON PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Kailey Klein was selected as the 2009-10 Horizon League Preseason Player of the Year in voting conducted by the league head coaches, sports information directors and select media. Klein, a two-time first team All-Horizon League pick, was the co-Player of the Year last season and the runner-up for top league honors as a sophomore. She is the third player in school history to earn preseason Player of the Year accolades, joining Mahogany Green (2000-01) and Audra Cook (1999-00). Cook went on to capture Player of the Year honors, while Green was a first team all-league pick.
GARLAND JOINS HER ON PRESEASON ALL-LEAGUE FIRST TEAM Junior Shawnita Garland joined Klein on the preseason All-Horizon League first team, making the Vikings the only team with two players on the first team. Garland had a breakout season last year, finishing second in the league in steals (2.8), fifth in three-point field goal percentage (.390), sixth in scoring (12.4), seventh in field goal percentage (.517) and ninth in minutes played (32.3) en route to earning second team all-league accolades.
37TH YEAR OF CSU WOMEN'S BASKETBALL: The 2009-10 season will be CSU's 37th year of competition. The Vikings have compiled an all-time record of 375-549 (.406), including a 99-136 (.421) record in 16 seasons in the Horizon League.
CSU SCORING RECORD WITHIN KLEIN'S REACH: Kailey Klein begins her senior season ranked fourth on the all-time scoring list with 1,514 career points, needing 338 to break the CSU career scoring mark held by Dianne Foster. Klein is also attempting to become the only player in school history to score at least 500 points in three separate seasons. She scored a school-record 654 points as a sophomore and 542 last year.
... AND SO IS 2,000 POINTS: Kailey Klein is 486 points shy of becoming just the third player in Horizon League history to score 2,000 career points. Former Milwaukee standout Traci Edwards (2005-09) is the all-time leading scorer in league history with 2,340 points, while former Butler great Julie VonDielingen (1989-93) ranks second in league annals with 2,018 points.
SHE'S A FRESHMAN: Freshman Shalonda Winton started both exhibition games and is slated to be in the starting lineup when the Vikings take the floor against Ohio on Friday night. She would be the first freshman to start a season opener since Stephaine Crosley and Jessica Roque played started against Miami (OH) in 2006. In two exhibition games, Winton averaged 7.0 points, 7.0 rebounds and 1.5 assists in 26.0 minutes per game.
KING ME: Freshman Honesty King provided a spark off the bench in Tuesday's (Nov. 10) exhibition victory over Wayne State, King, who redshirted last season, scored nine points in 20 minutes of action, hitting 4-of-5 from the field. She also dished out three assists and made two steals.
VIKINGS TO HEAD OUT OF COUNTRY: CSU will play two games at the Caribbean Challenge in Cancun, Mexico, facing Marquette on Nov. 26 and Iona on Nov. 27. It will be the first time in school history that the Vikings will play in-season games outside of the United States.
SCHOOL RECORD 12 LEAGUE WINS: CSU finished 12-6 and in third place in the Horizon League a year ago, tying the highest conference finish in school history (1997-98). In addition, the 12 league wins were a school record, breaking the old mark of 10 wins set in 2007-08.
BACK-TO-BACK-TO-BACK: A winning season this year will give the Vikings their third straight, a feat that has never been accomplished in school history. CSU has had back-to-back winning seasons only four times in program history and the consecutive winning seasons in 2007-08 and 2008-09 marked the first time in 25 years that CSU accomplished the feat.
VIKINGS PLAY JUST THREE DOUBLEHEADERS: The Vikings will play just three doubleheaders with the men's basketball team this season. The first will come on Saturday (Dec. 19) with the women hosting Indiana and the men entertaining West Virginia. The other two doubleheaders will be league contests with both teams playing Detroit on Thursday (Feb. 25) and Wright State on Saturday (Feb. 27). Over the last two seasons, the squads have combined to go 19-3 in doubleheaders with the women owning a 9-2 mark and the men going 10-1.
KLEIN AFTER FOURTH SCORING CROWN: Kailey Klein is attempting to become just the second player in school history to lead the team in scoring in four straight seasons. Klein, who averaged 11.0 points as a freshman, 19.9 points as a sophomore and 16.9 last season, would join Debra Taylor (1987-91) as the only players in school history with four consecutive scoring titles.
A GOOD TWO YEARS: CSU has enjoyed quite a bit of success over the last two years, posting 19 wins in each of the last two seasons with the 38 wins over two seasons being the second most over a two-year stretch in school history. The best two-year streak in school history was set in 1982-83 (23 wins) and 1983-84 (19 wins) when the squads combined to win 42 contests.
ESPECIALLY AT HOME: The Vikings have gone 20-7 at home over the last two seasons, marking the best two-year stretch in program history. The 1980-81 (11-2) and 1981-82 (8-5) squads held the old mark with 19 wins over a two-year period.
UP NEXT: The Vikings continue their early season schedule when CSU travels to Toledo for a 2:00 p.m. contest on Sunday (Nov. 15).
