GAME #21
Cleveland State at Purdue Fort Wayne
Wednesday, January 21 | 7:00 pm | Fort Wayne, Ind.
Watch Live | Live Stats

SETTING THE SCENE
The Cleveland State women's basketball team will hit the road for a pair of games this week, beginning with a 7:00 p.m. contest at Purdue Fort Wayne on Wednesday, January 21. Entering Wednesday's contest, the Vikings are 15-5 on the year and 5-4 in Horizon League play, while the Mastodons are currently 11-8 overall and own a matching 5-4 record in league action.
 
A WIN ON WEDNESDAY WOULD...
Extend Cleveland State's win streak to four straight…Mark Cleveland State's first road win of the 2026 calendar year…Put the Vikings at 6-4 through the first 10 #HLWBB games of the year.
 
THE CLEVELAND STATE/PURDUE FORT WAYNE SERIES
Wednesday's game will mark the 21st meeting between the two teams, with Cleveland State owning a 17-3 advantage in the all-time series. Last year, the two teams matched up against each other four times, with each team picking up two wins. One of Cleveland State's wins came in the Great 8 of the 2025 WNIT, as the Vikings earned a 76-65 victory over the Mastodons to advance to the WNIT Fab 4.
 
SCOUTING THE MASTODONS
Purdue Fort Wayne enters Wednesday's game with an 11-8 record on the year, including a 5-4 mark in Horizon League play…Most recently, the Mastodons have lost three straight against Robert Morris, Youngstown State and Green Bay, with all three of those games coming on the road…Purdue Fort Wayne's 5-4 record in #HLWBB play puts them tied for fourth in the standings along with Cleveland State and Robert Morris…The Mastodons currently rank second among league teams averaging 69.1 points per game, while ranking third with 9.00 steals…Individually, Alana Nelson leads the league in scoring (16.7), while Jordan Reid ranks second averaging 2.4 steals per game.
 
BACK ON THE ROAD
Wednesday's game at Purdue Fort Wayne will be just the ninth road contest of the season for the Vikings, with Cleveland State currently standing at 4-4 when playing away from home. Out of Cleveland State's remaining 11 regular season games, the Vikings will play six away from home, including back-to-back games this week at Purdue Fort Wayne and Youngstown State.
 
VIKINGS NOTCH 15-WIN SEASON
Sunday's win against RMU marked the 15th win of the 2025-26 campaign for the Vikings, marking the fifth straight season that Cleveland State has recorded 15+ wins. Among Horizon League teams, CSU is one of just two teams with 15 wins on the year (Green Bay).
 
ROCKWOOD HAS SEASON-HIGH GAME AGAINST RMU
Last time out, Laurel Rockwood had her best game of the season, finishing with 14 points and six rebounds - all during the first half of play. Rockwood, who played 17 minutes during the first half, was 3-for-4 from the field and 8-for-10 from the free throw line. This marked the second double-digit scoring game for Rockwood this season, while it was the fifth time that she has grabbed five or more boards.
 
ZINGARO LEADING THE VIKING OFFENSE
Izabella Zingaro finished with 13 points against RMU last time out, marking her sixth straight game with double-digit points and her 16th 10+ game of the season. For the year, Zingaro is averaging a team-best 15.4 points per game, while also averaging 17.6 points per game in league action - including a trio of 20-point performance in #HLWBB play.
 
…ZINGARO AMONG NATION'S BEST IN FIELD GOAL PERCENTAGE
Entering Wednesday's game, Izabella Zingaro ranks fifth among Division I players with a .629 field goal percentage on the year. Zingaro, who has been perfect from the field twice this season, leads all league players in the category while also ranking second in the #HLWBB standings with a .833 free throw percentage.
 
FIVE VIKINGS HAVE DOUBLE-DOUBLES ON THE YEAR
Through the first part of the 2025-26 campaign a league-leading five Vikings have tallied double-doubles, including Macey Fegan and Izabella Zingaro who have multiple on the year. Cleveland State is one of just two schools with two or more players that have multiple double-doubles on the year, while the Vikings also lead the league with 10 individual double-digit rebounding performances on the year.
 
…CLEVELAND STATE ON THE BOARDS
Over the last three games Cleveland State has held a major advantage on the boards, outrebounding its opponents 124-75 during this stretch. In two of the last three games the Vikings have grabbed 40+ rebounds, and are averaging 36.9 boards per game, owning a league-best +5.1 rebounding margin.
 
LEONARD TOP-15 NATIONALLY IN STEALS
After 20 games played this season, Jada Leonard continues to lead the Horizon League and rank 15th nationally with 60 steals on the year. Leonard, who has recorded at least one takeaway in every game this season, is averaging 3.0 steals per game. Leonard's 60 steals on the year makes her the only Horizon League player with 60+ takeaways during the 2025-26 campaign.
 
CLEVELAND STATE ON THE OFFENSIVE END
As a team, Cleveland State has had one of the more efficient offenses so far this season, leading the Horizon League in Scoring (72.2), Margin (14.1) and Field Goal Percentage (.455). In addition, the Vikings have scored 70+ points 10 times, while three Vikings rank in the top-five among league players in scoring; Izabella Zingaro (2nd-15.4), Colbi Maples (4th-14.3), and Jada Leonard (T-5th-13.3).
 
…VIKINGS SHARING THE BALL
So far this season the Vikings have done a good job of sharing the ball, as they rank third among league teams averaging 14.40 assists per game. Last time out, Cleveland State recorded 14 assists on 20 made field goals against RMU, marking the 10th straight game that the Vikings have recorded double-digit helpers. Through the first 20 games, CSU has posted 10+ assists 18 times, including a trio of 20-assist games.
 
HEAD COACH CHRIS KIELSMEIER
The Vikings will be under the direction of eighth-year head coach Chris Kielsmeier, who owns a career head coaching record of 583-191. At Cleveland State, Kielsmeier owns a record of 167-75, with his 150th victory as a Viking coming in a 92-61 decision over Detroit Mercy last season. Under his guidance, Cleveland State has posted five 20-win seasons, including a program-record 30 wins during the 2023-24 campaign.
 
UP NEXT
Cleveland State will close out the week at Youngstown State on Sunday, January 25.