GAME #34 {WNIT Second Round}
Cleveland State vs. Monmouth
Monday, March 23 | 7:00 pm | Wolstein Center
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SETTING THE SCENE
The Cleveland State women's basketball team will be making its sixth straight postseason appearance this week, set to participate in the 2026 WNIT. The Vikings will open play with a second round contest on Monday, March 23, welcoming Monmouth to the Wolstein Center for a 7:00 p.m. contest. Entering postseason play, Cleveland State stands at 24-9 on the year, while Monmouth is currently 21-11.
A WIN ON MONDAY WOULD...
Advance the Vikings to the Super 16 of the WNIT…Mark the ninth postseason win for Cleveland State in program history…Give the Vikings 25 wins on the year for the fourth time under head coach
Chris Kielsmeier.
THE CLEVELAND STATE/MONMOUTH SERIES
Monday's game will mark the third meeting between the two teams in program history, with Cleveland State picking up wins in both of the first two matchups during the 1990-91 and 1998-99 seasons.
SCOUTING THE HAWKS
Monmouth enters Monday's game with a 21-11 record on the year…Last time out, the Hawks picked up a 72-62 victory over Lehigh in the first round of WNIT play…Monmouth finished regular season play with a 12-6 CAA record and advanced to the quarterfinals before falling to fourth-seeded Stony Brook…This marks the third WNIT berth for the Hawks, also playing in the 2011 and 2024 tournaments…So far this season three Hawks are averaging double-digit points, led by Gigi Gamble who is averaging 14.9 points per game…Divine Dibula is averaging a team-best 6.8 rebounds per game, while Madalena Amaro has 106 assists and 52 steals to lead the Hawks.
2026 WNIT
This year's WNIT field features 48 teams, including 16 that received byes into the second round of the tournament. First round matchups were contested March 19-21, while second round games are being played March 22-24. Second round winners will advance to the Super 16 (March 25-27), while the Great 8 games are set for March 28-30, Fab 4 for April 1 and the 2026 WNIT championship game is scheduled for April 4. All games will be hosted on campus sites.
…A LOOK AT THE BRACKET
Cleveland State is one of three Horizon League teams in the WNIT field, joining Purdue Fort Wayne and Youngstown State - with all three #HLWBB teams earning byes into the second round of the tournament. Along with these two, there are two additional teams in the field from the Vikings' 25-26 schedule, as St. Bonaventure and Radford both earned invites to the tournament.
…CLEVELAND STATE IN THE WNIT
This will mark the third appearance for the Vikings in the WNIT, earning a spot in the tournament field last year along with 2014-15. Last season, the Vikings advanced all the way to the Fab 4, posting a 3-1 record during the tournament.
HOME-SWEET-HOME
Monday's game will mark the 19th home game for the Vikings this season, with Cleveland State owning a 17-1 record when playing on its home court this year. Over the last four years, the Vikings have combined for a 64-4 record when playing at home, including a perfect 17-0 record during the 2023-24 campaign.
…POSTSEASON PLAY AT THE WOLSTEIN CENTER
Monday's game will mark the third time in program history that the Vikings are hosting a postseason game in the Wolstein Center, and the second time for WNIT play to come to Cleveland. The Vikings have also hosted postseason games during the 2010-11 season (WBI) and last year (WNIT).
LAST TIME OUT…
Cleveland State was last in action at the 2026 Horizon League Tournament, advancing to the semifinals for the seventh straight season. The Vikings, who were playing as the No. 3 seed in the tournament, dropped a 60-55 contest against second-seeded Youngstown State in the semifinals after picking up an 81-80 overtime win against Oakland in the first round.
…ZINGARO NAMED TO #HLWBB ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM
Izabella Zingaro was named to the Horizon League All-Tournament Team, adding to her list of Horizon League postseason accolades. Through two tournament games, Zingaro averaged 24.0 points and 12.0 rebounds, while shooting 66-percent from the floor. Zingaro tallied back-to-back double-doubles, while also combining for a perfect 12-for-12 effort from the free throw line.
CSU ENTERS POSTSEASON PLAY WITH 24 WINS
After securing their fifth straight 20-win season with a 57-52 win at RMU earlier this year, Cleveland State enters WNIT play with 24 wins - which ranks fourth for the most wins in a single-season in program history. The 24 wins marks the sixth 20-win campaign for Cleveland State over the last seven years, while one more win would give the Vikings 25 wins for the fourth time under head coach
Chris Kielsmeier.
ZINGARO NAMED #HLWBB NEWCOMER OF THE YEAR
Earlier this month
Izabella Zingaro was named the Horizon League Newcomer of the Year, becoming the third Viking to earn the honor and the second over the last three seasons. Zingaro, who was also named to the All-League First Team, finished regular season play leading the league in scoring (16.7) and field goal percentage (.606), while ranking fourth in rebounding (7.2).
…LEONARD & MAPLES NAMED ALL-LEAGUE
In addition to
Izabella Zingaro, the duo of
Jada Leonard and
Colbi Maples also picked up All-League accolades, with Maples earning a spot on the First Team and Leonard being named to the All-Defensive Team. This marked the second time that Maples has been named to the #HLWBB First Team, while the All-Defensive Team honor is the first #HLWBB award for Leonard.
MAPLES NAMED TO #HLWBB ALL-ACADEMIC TEAM
For the first time in her career, graduate student
Colbi Maples earned a spot on the Horizon League All-Academic team, becoming the fourth Viking all-time to earn the recognition. Maples, who graduated Magna Cum Laude with a degree in electronics engineering technology last spring, is currently pursuing her MBA, holding a 3.78 GPA. Maples was one of five #HLWBB players named to the team.
ZINGARO WITH BACK-TO-BACK DOUBLE-DOUBLES
Izabella Zingaro enters WNIT play after posting back-to-back double-doubles in Cleveland State's last two games, finishing with 29 points/10 rebounds against Oakland in the Horizon League first round and 19 points/14 rebounds against Youngstown State in the semifinals. For the year, Zingaro has a team and league-best 10 double-doubles, including eight over the last 11 games.
MAPLES WITH TWENTY 20+ POINT GAMES AT CSU
So far this season
Colbi Maples has recorded nine 20-point games, giving her a total of 20, 20-point performances during her time at Cleveland State. Maples, who is averaging 15.5 points per game as a Viking, recorded 11 20-point performances during the 2023-24 campaign before sitting out the majority of the 2024-25 season. During her two+ years at CSU, Maples has played in and started 69 games, with Monday's contest being just her second postseason appearance in the Green & White (2024 WBIT).
FEGAN OVER THE LAST EIGHT GAMES
Over the last eight games,
Macey Fegan has been a large part of Cleveland State going 7-1, averaging 11.5 points and 8.5 rebounds per game during this stretch. Fegan, who is averaging 9.1 points and 6.2 rebounds per game on the season, has tallied two double-doubles during this stretch, while also notching a career-high 21 points against Green Bay and a career-high tying 13 rebounds against Purdue Fort Wayne. In addition, she has accounted for 32 assists and 10 steals over the last eight games.
LEONARD TOP-20 NATIONALLY IN STEALS
After 33 games played this season,
Jada Leonard continues to lead the Horizon League and rank 17th nationally with 96 steals on the year. Leonard, who has recorded at least one takeaway in all but one game this season, is averaging 2.9 steals per game. Leonard's 96 steals on the year makes her the only Horizon League player with 90+ takeaways during the 2025-26 campaign, while she is one of just 19 Division I players with 95+ total steals.
…ZINGARO AMONG NATION'S BEST IN FIELD GOAL PERCENTAGE
Entering Monday's game,
Izabella Zingaro ranks seventh among Division I players with a .611 field goal percentage on the year. Zingaro, who has been perfect from the field twice this season, leads all Horizon League players in the category. In addition, Zingaro also ranks 10th nationally with her 172 made free throws on the year, leading the league in the category while ranking sixth among #HLWBB players with a .800 free throw percentage.
VIKINGS FROM THE FREE THROW LINE
So far this season, the Vikings rank 12th nationally averaging 15.85 free throws made per game. For the year, Cleveland State has converted 523 free throws, leading all Horizon League teams. Individually,
Izabella Zingaro is 172-for-215 from the charity stripe, while
Colbi Maples (98-for-129) and
Jada Leonard (103-for-124) have both added 90+ free throws each. For the year, Cleveland State has recorded 20+ free throws 11 times, including a season-best 28-for-35 effort at Purdue Fort Wayne earlier this year.
…AND FROM THE FIELD
As a team, Cleveland State has had one of the more efficient offenses this season, leading the Horizon League with a .448 clip from the field. The Vikings have shot 50-percent or better eight times so far this season, including in two of their last four outings against Wright State (.529) and Oakland (.547) to close out regular season play. The Vikings also lead all Horizon League teams with a +10.8 scoring margin, while ranking second averaging 70.7 points per game this year.
…CLEVELAND STATE ON THE BOARDS
So far this season the Vikings have held a major advantage on the boards, outrebounding their opponents 1,228-1,056. Cleveland State has combined for 40+ rebounds 11 times, including a season-high 49 against IU Indy earlier this year. As a team, the Vikings are averaging 37.2 rebounds per game, while
Izabella Zingaro (4th-7.5) and
Macey Fegan (9th-6.2) both rank in the top-10 individually among Horizon League players.
MAPLES RECORDS 1,000TH POINT AT CLEVELAND STATE
With a 17-point performance at Robert Morris last month, graduate student
Colbi Maples eclipsed the 1,000-point mark for her Cleveland State career. Maples, who enters Monday's game with 1,060 points as a Viking, has 1,522 total points on her career. Maples, who finished with 580 points during her first season with the Vikings (23-24), has recorded 451 points so far this season, ranking fifth among league players averaging 15.0 points per game.
…LEONARD RECORDS 1,000TH CAREER POINT
Jada Leonard became the second active Viking to record 1,000 career points against IU Indy last month, as she went 2-for-2 from the free throw line to end the game at 1,001 career points. Leonard, who is one of three Vikings to be averaging double-digit points on the year, is currently eighth among #HLWBB players with 394 total points on the year.
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 592-195. At Cleveland State, Kielsmeier owns a record of 176-79, 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 six 20-win seasons and has earned six straight postseason bids.
