March 21, 2010

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Contact: Greg Murphy

NOTRE DAME, Ind, -- The postseason run for the Cleveland State Vikings seniors Kailey Klein, Stephaine Crosley and Jessica and Angel Roque came to an end on Sunday afternoon as No. 2 Notre Dame used its size advantage inside to post an 86-58 win over the 15th-seeded Vikings.

"I would like to say that I am very proud of my team. Tonight was a tough matchup for us. Notre Dame is very good and played very well," head coach Kate Peterson Abiad said. "We came into this tournament winning the Horizon Tournament by hitting a lot of shots. Tonight, Kailey carried us in the first half, and we were just not able to connect from an outside range or get to the basket to cut Notre Dame's defense, and we turned the ball over way too many times. The game got away from us in the second half, but the girls did not quit fighting."

The loss ends CSU's season at 19-14 while Notre Dame, who improves to 28-5, advances to meet 10th-seeded Vermont on Tuesday (March 23).

Klein led all scorers with 31 points, her ninth career 30-point game. The Vikings' all-time scoring leader, she finishes her storied CSU career with 2,140 points.

The senior class leaves with something to be proud of. Crosley finished with seven points and seven rebounds, Angel Roque handed out a game-high eight assists.

The Irish, who finished with 48 points in the paint, overcame 40-percent first half shooting to go 21-for-34 in the second half (.618), most coming on shots within five feet of the basket.

UND shot .516 for the game (33-64) while CSU could manage just .373 (22-59).

Becca Bruszewski came off the bench to lead the balanced Notre Dame attack with 14 points while Ashley Barrow added 13 points and Devereaux Peters chipped in with 12.

The game was decided in an eight-minute period around the intermission when Notre Dame forced the ball inside during a 21-6 run that turned a four-point game (29-25) into a 50-31 Notre Dame lead.

"I thought that we saw what we thought that we would see from Notre Dame. They put the ball inside that was very difficult for us, as small as we are, Peterson Abiad said. "It was a tough matchup for us, and they took advantage of it. Again, I am very proud of these girls and the name they have made for Cleveland State."

After making 17 of 31 three-pointers (.548) in Horizon League tourney wins over Green Bay and Butler, CSU cooled from the outside, going just two-for-15 (.133).

The Vikings turned the ball over 24 times, forcing 14, but the Irish used those turnovers to score 21 points.

Klein was solely responsible for keeping the Vikings close in the first half, letting loose a scoring barrage in the open stanza that the State of Indiana hadn't seen since Jimmy Chitwood played for Hickory.

Senior Stephaine Crosley had the first and last basket of the first half for CSU but Klein had all 21 points in between, going nine-for-14 from the field as the Vikings trailed, 34-25 at the intermission.

Playing against a bigger and more physical Fighting Irish squad, the Vikings held their ground. CSU held an 8-7 rebounding advantage early to open up an 8-4 lead.

Turnovers proved costly as CSU turned the ball over seven times during an 18-2 Notre Dame run that put the Irish ahead, 22-10 with 7:29 left. Notre Dame pulled down nine straight rebounds, including five off the offensive glass to key the run.

The Vikings composed themselves however as Klein went to work using a myriad of baseline drives and pull up jumpers, running off nine straight points as the Vikings closed to within 22-19 (4:56).

With Notre Dame leading 29-25 with 1:13 left, The Irish scored the final five points of the half, three on a three-point play by Diggins and a put-back hoop inside from Becca Bruszewski to send UND to the locker room ahead, 34-25.

The ensuing Irish burst to start the second half putting Notre Dame in control for the rest of the game, as they outscored CSU 52-33 in the second half shooting 61-percent from the field (21-for-34).