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Jan. 15, 2008
Contact: Brian McCann
Complete Release in PDF Format
Basketball Schedule Heats Up At Home. . . With the start of spring semester at Cleveland State on Jan. 14 comes a considerable increase in competition at Cleveland State as seven of the nine winter sports will be in action this week, with all but two teams playing on the road. The men's basketball team (12-5, 5-0) will face one of its toughest - and most important - weeks in recent history, hosting 12th-ranked Butler on Thursday (Jan. 17) and Valparaiso on Saturday (Jan. 19). Both games will start at 7:30 p.m. in the Wolstein Center. CSU enters the week in first place in the Horizon League with a perfect 5-0 mark and will face the teams currently in second and third place. The women's basketball squad will also be at home for a pair of games, playing the first game of a doubleheader with the men's team each day. The Vikings (8-7, 2-2) will host Detroit on Thursday (Jan. 17) and Wright State on Saturday (Jan. 19) with each contest starting at 5:00 p.m. The men's and women's swimming teams will travel to Wright State on Saturday (Jan. 19) for a 2:00 p.m. dual meet with the Raiders. The wrestling team continues its pre-Eastern Wrestling League slate by competing in three dual matches as part of the Ashland Duals. The competition takes place beginning at 10:00 a.m. on Sunday (Jan.20). After almost three months off from competition, the men's and women's tennis teams open their respective slates with a dual match at IPFW on Friday (Jan. 18) at 10:00 a.m. The men also play at Michigan State on Saturday (Jan. 19) at 6:00 p.m.
Men's Basketball Returns Home To Host 12th-Ranked Butler & Valparaiso. . . Off to their best start in 15 years, the men's basketball team (12-5, 5-0 HL) will host two of the biggest games in recent program history. CSU starts the week off when 12th-ranked Butler (16-1, 5-1) comes to the Wolstein Center for a 7:30 p.m. game on Thursday (Jan. 17). Valparaiso, which is currently in third place in the league with a 3-2 mark (12-5 overall), will be CSU's opponent on Saturday (Jan. 19) beginning at 7:30 p.m. The Valpo contest will be televised on SportsTime Ohio. Cleveland State returned home from its first Horizon League road trip of the season with a sweep, knocking off Detroit (74-64) on Thursday (Jan. 10) and Wright State (65-63) on Saturday (Jan. 12). The win at Detroit was the first-ever by the Vikings in the Motor City, snapping an 0-for-20 streak against the Titans. The Vikings used some last second dramatics to claim the win at Wright State as senior Kevin Francis made the game-winning three-pointer with 11.7 seconds left and the CSU defense thwarted three Raider scoring attempts in the final 10 seconds to preserve the win. "To go on the road and win two games in the Horizon League is monumental," CSU head coach Gary Waters said. "This team is still in the process of learning about itself and how each of the players fit into the game plan. To open up with five straight league wins speaks highly of what this team is about." The Vikings are making a name for themselves because of the relentless half-court defense they play. CSU out-rebounded both opponents by identical 34-24 margins last week, grabbing 21 offensive rebounds against the Raiders. Utilizing a rotation of 10 players, the second unit has proven to be as effective as the starters, averaging 25.6 points a game. They were even better last week, averaging 30.0 points in the two games, including a commanding 34-4 edge against Wright State and a 26-10 difference at Detroit. Women's Basketball Returns Home For Two Games. . . Cleveland State (8-7, 2-2 HL) returns to action for a pair of home games this week, beginning with a Thursday (Jan. 17) night contest against Detroit in the Wolstein Center at 5:00 p.m. The Vikings will then host Wright State on Saturday, Jan. 19, at 5:00 p.m. in the Wolstein Center. The Wright State contest will be televised live on SportsTime Ohio. The Vikings dropped a pair of games on its annual Wisconsin trip over the weekend. CSU fell to Green Bay, 87-61, on Thursday (Jan. 10) before dropping a 63-52 decision at Milwaukee on Saturday (Jan. 12). The Phoenix shot a blistering .667 (34-51) from the floor against the Vikings, marking the first time this season that an opponent shot better than 50 percent. "We have to keep things in perspective," head coach Kate Peterson Abiad said. "We went on the road and played two of the best teams in the conference in two of the most difficult venues in the league. We are going back home for two games and will continue to work hard. The transition we are making doesn't happen overnight and we are going to battle hard the rest of the year." Robyn Hoying and Angel Roque led the Vikings at Green Bay as both set career-highs in scoring. Hoying finished with 20 points to go along with a career-high 10 rebounds for her first career double-double. Roque tallied 15 points, including a career-best five three-pointers. Dominique Butler, a native of Milwaukee, paced CSU with 13 points in her homecoming. Ashland Duals Next For Vikings Wrestlers. . . The Cleveland State wrestling team travels to Ashland, Ohio for dual meets against three different schools on Sunday, Jan. 20, 2008. The competition will begin at 10:00 a.m. EST. The Vikings lost dual meets against Kent State and Eastern Michigan last week. The losses drop Cleveland State to 3-3 in dual meets this season. "I'm very disappointed in our performance," head coach Jack Effner said, "We had a perfect opportunity this week and we just didn't get the job done." He added, "It's a long season - it hurts to lose right now, but we have got to keep fighting." The Vikings head into next week hoping to get healthy. Leading winner for the season Robbie Michaels (23-4) was a late scratch before Eastern Michigan due to illness. Meanwhile several Vikings in that particular meet required injury timeouts during their matches against the Eagles, who won against CSU for the first time since the 2000-01 season. "We've got guys that are dinged up, but we are learning lessons of durablility. You just have to go out and get it done no matter what," Coach Effner said. Swimming Travels To Wright State. . . The CSU men's and women's swimming and diving teams head to Dayton, Ohio this Saturday, Jan. 19, 2008 for a dual meet against Wright State. The meet is scheduled to begin at 2:00 a.m. EST. In the teams' last competition at home on Sat. Jan. 12, the men's team won dual matchups against Canisius, Duquesne, and Xavier while winning 10 of 13 events. The women's team scored a dual win over Canisius while dropping decisions against Duquesne and Xavier. The meet also featured the debut of Deni Gasparin, a transfer from Croatia who will help the men's team in the breaststroke and individual medley. "I want to congratulate our women in beating an excellent school in Canisius," head coach Wally Morton said. "I am also very excited how the men competed in winning all of their dual matchups" Gasparin was a winner in his first meet as a Viking as he scored a victory in the 100 breaststroke over his new teammate and school record holder Jakub Dobies. Gasparin's time of 56.64 is the team's second best time this year behind Dobies, who set the school record of 53.77 last season at the Horizon League Championship. In the diving events, senior Dan Baiko has been dominant this year, scoring victories in both the 1-meter and 3-meter dives in five meets this season, including this past Saturday. He continues to improve, as he had two of his highest scoring dives on Saturday. The women's team received quality performances from Erin Green, Kristine Bunker, and Lesley Jones at the quad meet. Green (1,000 freestyle) and Jones (100 freestyle) scored third place finishes in their respective events, while Bunker came close to setting a new personal best time in the 200 freestyle (2:00.63). Men's Tennis Opens Spring Season At IPFW. . . The Cleveland State men's tennis team will begin the spring portion of its season on Friday, Jan. 18 when it plays a dual match at IPFW beginning at 10:00 a.m. The following day (Jan. 19), the Vikings travel to East Lansing, Mich. for a battle against Michigan State beginning at 6:00 p.m. The men's squad plays an additional Big Ten foe, Indiana, in Bloomington, Ind. on Monday Jan. 21 at 10:00 a.m. "We start off very quickly with IPFW, Michigan State and Indiana," head coach Brian Etzkin said. "We have had IPFW's number the last several times that we have played them but they will definitely be gunning for us. Then it is on to Michigan State and #61 Indiana. We have been competing better against Big Ten opponents both individually and as a team. I am looking for big results this weekend." The Vikings had a successful fall season, placing three players into the ITA Regional Tournament and two at the Polo Ralph Lauren All-American Tennis Championships. Freshmen Phil Orno (6-6) and Ryan Hamning (8-4) lead the team in first and second singles spots, respectively, and went 5-3 at No. 1 doubles. Freshman Robert Fox finished 5-4 at No. 5 singles. Women's Tennis Travels To IPFW. . . After nearly three months out of competition, the Cleveland State women's tennis team returns to action against IPFW on Sunday, Jan. 20 at 9:00 a.m. The women remain on the road for a match at Michigan State on Monday, Jan. 21 at 10:00 a.m. "We will be looking to avenge last year's loss against both of these teams," head coach Brian Etzkin said. "We are hungry to beat IPFW, having chances to win last year but did not pull it out. We saw Michigan State this fall in a tournament and competed well against them. We need to turn our competitiveness into four points this weekend. I am very excited about seeing some new doubles combinations and with fielding a team that is as healthy as we have been in a long while." Senior Jenn Myers (6-4) is leading the team in wins at No. 3 singles. Sophomore Denisa Muntean (5-5) and freshman Sanda Bjelan (5-5) are .500 in singles play. Senior Christine Vogelgesang leads the team in doubles wins, going 8-2 with two partners, Myers and senior Lindsey Sellers. Viking High Fives Robyn Hoying: The senior women's basketball player recorded her first career double-double with career highs in points (20) and rebounds (10) at Green Bay on Thursday. Kevin Francis: The men's basketball senior made the game-winning three-pointer with 11.7 seconds left to give CSU a 65-63 win at Wright State. Dan Baiko: The senior diver swept the one- and three-meter events for the fifth time this season, helping CSU to wins over Duquesne, Xavier and Canisius last weekend. Robbie Michaels: The freshman wrestler claimed a decision at 157 against Kent State to give him a team-leading 23 wins this season. The Schedule Ahead For The Vikings Jan. 17 (Thursday) Men's Basketball hosts Butler Jan. 18 (Friday) Women's Tennis at IPFW Jan. 19 (Saturday) Women's Swimming at Wright State Women's Basketball hosts Wright State Men's Basketball hosts Valparaiso Men's Tennis at Michigan State Jan. 20 (Sunday)
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