SETTING THE SCENE
The Cleveland State women's basketball team will begin postseason play this week, hosting Detroit Mercy on Thursday, March 6 in a quarterfinal game in the 2025 Barbasol Horizon League Basketball Championship. Entering Thursday's game, CSU stands at 23-8 overall this year and finished the regular season with a 14-6 record in #HLWBB play, while Detroit Mercy is currently 15-14 on the year and notched an 8-12 record against league opponents during the regular season.
 
A WIN ON THURSDAY WOULD…
Put the Vikings into the semifinals of the 2025 Barbasol Horizon League Basketball Championships…Make the Vikings 13-5 in #HLWBB Tournament play under head coach Chris Kielsmeier…Give Cleveland State its sixth straight postseason victory when playing at home over the last six seasons.
 
THE CLEVELAND STATE/DETROIT MERCY SERIES
Thursday's game will mark the 73rd meeting between the two teams, with Detroit Mercy owning a 42-30 edge in the all-time series. Despite this advantage, the Vikings picked up wins in both of the regular season meetings between the two teams. In Horizon League Tournament play, this will be the fifth matchup between the Vikings and Titans, and the first since the 2016-17 season.
 
AGAINST THE TITANS THIS SEASON…
Cleveland State picked up wins in both meetings during the regular season, earning a 72-62 victory on the road and a 72-55 victory during CSU's annual Kids Day Game. This marked one of five series sweeps for the Vikings in league play this year.
 
2025 BARBASOL HORIZON LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHIP
This year's #HLWBB Tournament began with three First Round games on Tuesday, March 4 with the winners advancing to Thursday's Quarterfinal games. After earning byes into the quarterfinals, the league's top-five teams will begin tournament play on Thursday. The Semifinals are slated for Monday, March 10 and the Championship will be held on Tuesday, March 11 - with both the semifinals and championship game being held at the Corteva Coliseum in Indianapolis, Ind. All games will be carried on the ESPN Network.
 
…VIKINGS IN #HLWBB PLAY
Cleveland State enters the #HLWBB Tournament as the No. 3 seed after finishing the regular season with a 14-6 mark against league opponents. The 14 wins marks the fourth straight year that Cleveland State has finished with 14+ league wins during regular season play.
 
…VIKINGS IN THE #HLWBB TOURNAMENT
Under head coach Chris Kielsmeier the Vikings own a 11-5 record in the Horizon League Tournament, including a perfect 3-0 record in 2023 when the Vikings captured the #HLWBB Tournament Championship. Cleveland State has earned a spot in the semifinals 11 times in program history, while the Vikings have made five appearances in the championship game, capturing the #HLWBB Tournament title during the 2007-08, 2009-10 and 2023-24 seasons.
 
…VIKINGS AS THE No. 3 SEED
This marks the first time during head coach Chris Kielsmeier's tenure that the Vikings will be playing as the No. 3 seed in the Horizon League Tournament. Cleveland State will be playing as a top-three seed for the third straight season, while the Vikings have now been a top-four seed 12 times in program history.
 
HOME-SWEET-HOME
Thursday's game will mark the 15th home game for the Vikings this season, with Cleveland State owning a 12-2 record when playing on its home court this year. Over the last three seasons, the Vikings have gone 44-3 when playing at home, including a perfect 17-0 campaign last year.
 
DOUBLEHEADER BASKETBALL
Thursday will mark the fifth doubleheader of the 2024-25 season, as the Cleveland State Men's team earned the No. 2 seed in the #HLMBB Tournament and will also be hosting a quarterfinal contest. So far this season, the Vikings are 4-0 when playing in doubleheader games with the men.
 
CLEVELAND STATE ENTERS #HLWBB TOURNAMENT WITH 23 WINS
After securing their fourth straight 20-win season with a 79-58 victory over Oakland earlier this year, Cleveland State enters #HLWBB Tournament play with 23 wins - tied for the third most wins in a single-season in program history. The 23 wins marks the fifth 20-win campaign for Cleveland State over the last six years, while it also makes the Vikings one of three Horizon League teams with 20+ wins on the year.
 
LEO & REISMA REACH MILESTONE GAMES
Throughout regular season play, Destiny Leo and Jordana Reisma both played in milestone games, as Reisma played in her 100th game as a Viking and Leo appeared in the starting lineup for the 100th time at CSU. Reisma's 100th game in the Green & White came against Wright State (2/26), while Leo's 100th start came against RMU (2/22). Entering tournament play, Leo ranks fifth with both 124 games played and 102 starts in the CSU Career Record Book.
 
PERDUE NAMED #HLWBB PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Earlier this week Mickayla Perdue was named the Horizon League Player of the Year, becoming just the fifth Viking in program history to earn Player of the Year honors. Perdue, who was also named to the All-League First Team, is averaging 19.5 points and 3.3 assists per game, and has recorded a league-high 16 20-point performances on the year. For the season, Perdue has 606 total points, ranking 13th nationally among Division I payers.
 
…VIKINGS WITH PLAYER OF THE YEAR HONORS
Mickayla Perdue's Player of the Year honor marked the third straight season that Cleveland State has taken home the major award from the league. This marked the fourth time in #HLWBB history that the same school has earned Player of the Year honors during three straight seasons, but it was the first time that three different players from the same school have earned the recognition (2025-Perdue, 2024-Maples, 2023-Leo).
 
GUERREIRO, LEO & REISMA EARN ALL-LEAGUE HONORS
In addition to Mickayla Perdue, the trio of Sara Guerreiro, Destiny Leo and Jordana Reisma also picked up All-League accolades, with Reisma earning a spot on the All-League Second Team & All-Defensive Team, Guerreiro being named to the All-League Third Team & All-Defensive Team and Leo picking up All-League Third Team honors.
 
…LEO BECOMES FOUR-TIME ALL-LEAGUE HONOREE
With her All-League Third Team accolade this season, Destiny Leo became a four-time All-League honoree, picking up postseason accolades in each of her four complete seasons that she has played at Cleveland State. Leo becomes the fourth Viking all-time to be a four-time All-League honoree, and has earned Player of the Year, Sixth Player of the Year, First Team, Third Team, and Freshman Team nods.
 
REISMA EFFICIENT FROM THE FIELD
Jordana Reisma continues to be one of the most efficient shooters among Division I players, entering Thursday's quarterfinal with a .672 field goal percentage on the year. Reisma, who currently ranks third among all Division I players in field goal percentage, is shooting 174-for-259 on the year, while she currently sits at the top of the CSU Career Record Book with a .600 clip (396-660) for her career.
 
PERDUE ON SINGLE-SEASON SCORING LIST
After finishing with 11 points at Youngstown State in the regular season finale, Mickayla Perdue eclipsed the 600-point mark for the season, entering Thursday's matchup ranked seventh on the CSU Single-Season Scoring List with 606 points. Perdue is one of three players to hold multiple spots on the top-10 list after finishing sixth with her 607 points that she combined for last season, while she is one of just two Vikings all-time to record multiple 600-point seasons (Kailey Klein).
 
LEO ON THE CAREER SCORING LIST
Destiny Leo continues to add to her career point total, entering #HLWBB Tournament play with 1,898 total points. After moving into second place on the CSU Scoring List earlier this season, Leo is now just two points shy of becoming the second Viking all-time to reach the 1,900-point plateau. So far this season, Leo is averaging 11.0 points per game, ranking 16th among #HLWBB players.
 
CLEVELAND STATE ON THE BOARDS
The Vikings continue to be the top rebounding team in the league, averaging 38.2 boards per game through 31 games played. Cleveland State also holds a league-best +7.1 rebounding margin, and has outrebounded its opponent 24 times so far this year. Cleveland State's current rebounding margin of +7.1 sits at the top of the Single-Season Record Book, while the Vikings' 893 defensive boards so far this season ranks third.
 
VIKINGS FROM THE FREE THROW LINE
Through 31 games played this season, the Vikings rank eighth nationally averaging 16.68 free throws made per game. For the season, Cleveland State has converted a league-best 517 free throws, including 20+ free throws during seven games this year. The 517 total free throws currently ranks fourth on the CSU Single-Season List, as one of just four teams all-time with 500+ made free throws in a campaign.
 
…AND FROM THE FIELD
As a team, Cleveland State has had one of the more efficient offenses this season, leading the Horizon League and ranking 11th among Division I teams with a .475 clip from the field on the year. The Vikings have shot 50-percent or better during 10 games so far this season, including five times during #HLWBB play (at Wright State, at Detroit Mercy, at Milwaukee, Oakland, Wright State). Cleveland State's .475 clip from the field, currently sits at the top of the CSU Single-Season Record Book, while the 75.1 points per game scoring average ranks fifth.
 
GUERREIRO NAMED TO #HLWBB ALL-ACADEMIC TEAM
For the second straight season, graduate student Sara Guerreiro has earned a spot on the Horizon League All-Academic Team. Guerreiro, who graduated Summa Cum Laude with a degree in Mechanical Engineering last spring, is currently pursuing her master's degree in the same field, holding a 4.00 grade point average. Guerreiro was one of five #HLWBB players named to the team.
 
HEAD COACH CHRIS KIELSMEIER
The Vikings will be under the direction of seventh-year head coach Chris Kielsmeier, who currently owns a career head coaching record of 564-184. At Cleveland State, Kielsmeier owns a record of 148-68, with his 100th victory as a Viking coming in a 95-41 decision over Chicago State last season. Under his guidance, Cleveland State has posted five 20-win seasons, including a program-record 30 wins during the 2023-24 campaign.