Cleveland State (8-11, 3-3 Horizon)
at Valparaiso (3-15, 1-4 Horizon)
Game #19 - Monday, January 27 - 7:05 p.m.
Athletics-Recreation Center (5,000) -
Valparaiso, Ind.
Next Up in Crusader Basketball: The Crusaders look to build off Thursday’s convincing win over Detroit when they welcome Cleveland State to the ARC for a 7:05 pm jump ball. Led by junior Imani Gordon, the Vikings enter Monday’s contest as the top shooting team in the Horizon League. Cleveland State rides into town on a three-game losing skid.
Last Time Out: Valpo bludgeoned Detroit 85-44 last Thursday. Four Crusaders either matched or set career highs in points, steals, rebounds or three-pointers made. The Brown and Gold closed the first half on an impressive 35-2 run as they outperformed the Titans in virtually every statistical category. Abby Dean contributed a career-high 20 points and six steals, Jessica Carr collected seven steals, and Charae Richardson added 16 points on 6-of-7 shooting from the field.
Following the Crusaders: Audio - Valpo Sports Radio Network (WVUR, 95.1 FM Valparaiso) - Brandon Vickrey (PxP) and Tommy Mantice (Color)
Video - Horizon League Network (Tommy Mantice and Brandon Vickrey). Links for the video and live stats are available at ValpoAthletics.com. In addition, ValpoGameday.com is a one-stop shop for live video, stats and social media interaction, all on the same page.
Head Coach Tracey Dorow: Tracey Dorow (14-35) is in her second season at the helm of the Valparaiso women’s basketball program in 2013-14. In her first season, Dorow led the Crusaders to eleven victories overall, including five in Horizon League play. Dorow arrived in Valparaiso after 14 seasons at Ferris State. She compiled a 232-163 record while with the Bulldogs. Furthermore, Ferris State posted the #1 grade point average in all of Division II for the 1999-2000 women’s basketball season as well as the #2 ranking in 2002-2003.
Series Notes: Valpo leads 14-10 over Cleveland State in a series that started in 1989. While the Crusaders do own the overall edge in the series, the Vikings are 8-4 versus the Brown and Gold since 2008 when Valpo joined the Horizon League.
Storylines...
- Monday is the 25th meeting between Cleveland State and Valpo.
- Despite residing in the same conference for 13 years, the two teams have never met in the postseason.
- Monday’s game features three of the Horizon League’s top four three-point shooters (Horton, Green, Schmitt).
- The Crusaders have just one player on their current roster who averaged more than four points per game last season versus the Vikings (Richardson, 5.5 PPG).
- Cleveland State is first in the HL in 3-point FG%; Valpo ranks 9th.
- The Crusaders and Vikings split the 2012-13 season series with each team winning at home.
- Valpo’s win came in a thrilling 92-85 overtime tilt at the ARC. Gina Lange tied the game at 75-all with two seconds in regulation to send it to OT.
@CSUWBBVIKINGS
- @CSUWBBVIKINGS enters Monday night’s game on a three-game losing streak. Their first loss of the streak ended a three-game winning streak which followed another three-game losing skid.
- @CSUWBBVIKINGS lost its first HL road game Saturday at UIC.
- @CSUWBBVIKINGS have gone with the same starting five all 19 games (Gordon/Aideyman/Coleman/Green/Schmitt).
- Imani Gordon is averaging 17.6 points per game and 9.4 boards/game.
- @CSUWBBVIKINGS is ranked last in the conference in rebounding.
- Kate Peterson Abiad is in her 11th season as head coach of the Vikings.
- Peterson Abiad graduated from University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point where she has an honorable mention All-American.
- She’s served as an assistant at Indiana, Eastern Illinois, and Wisconsin.
Jessica Carr
- Tallied seven steals versus Detroit on Thursday evening.
- Gave out a career-high six assists at UIC last Tuesday night.
- Got back in double figures Saturday for first time in four games.
- Scored 12 points and had four assists in just her second game of the season.
- Made her season debut versus Western Michigan on Dec. 29th, where she scored five points and notched an assist, steal, and rebound.
Elizabeth Hamlet
- Scored a season-high 12 points versus her alma mater (Oakland) on Jan. 15.
- Shot 3-for-5 from the field in Valpo’s 63-61 defeat of Toledo at the Toledo Invite.
Abby Dean
- Poured in a career high 20 points and six steals Thursday vs. Detroit.
- Has knocked down five field goals in six different contests.
- Has compiled 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, and 17-point games this season.
- Has started every game for the Crusaders.
- Tallied a then career-high 17 points at Tennessee Tech on Nov. 24th.
- Scored first collegiate points at Cameron Indoor Stadium on 11/23/12.
- Made collegiate debut on November 14th versus Purdue-Calumet.
- Tossed in 11 points in 19 minutes vs.Western Michigan last season.
Lexi Miller
- Tallied 13 assists to five turnovers during the Toledo Invite.
- Scored a career-high 18 points vs. Tennessee Tech on 11/24/13.
- Owns best assists/turnover ratio of any Crusader (32:30).
- Accumulated 15 points, four rebounds, four assists, and three steals (all career highs at the time) at Saint Louis on 11/10/13.
- Made collegiate debut against the Indiana Hoosiers 11/9/12.
- Made first start in Hinkle Fieldhouse versus the Butler Bulldogs.
- Scored 13 points in Valpo’s 88-62 victory over UIC on 2/16/13.
Charae Richardson
- Has recorded at least one steal in each of the last seven games.
- Has scored 13 or more points in seven contests.
- Scored a career-high 23 points versus Montana State.
- Dished out a season-high seven assists at Tennessee Tech.
- Leads team in points/game (11.1) and total assists (49).
- Scored 15 points in the season opener at Saint Louis on Nov. 10th.
- Played in all 31 games for the Crusaders last season, including 28 starts.
- Carried an 84.1 free-throw percentage.
- Finished second on the team last season in 3-pointers (24) and assists (95).
Liz Horton
- Has scored 14 points in back-to-back games.
- Made five of six three-point attempts en route to a career-high 20 points at Tulsa on 1/4/14.
- Shot 23-of-45 from the field in December including 10-for-19 from behind the arc.
- Leads team in three-point field goal percentage (42.9%) and in total FG% (47.0%)
- Has scored exactly 11 points on four different occasions this season (Illinois, #6 Notre Dame, Montana State, Toledo).
- Appeared in 30 games for the Brown and Gold a season ago.
- Named Crusaders’ Most Improved Player in 2012-13.
- Scored 19 points, including 3-for-3 shooting from behind the arc, at Western Michigan on Dec. 19th.
Sharon Karungi
- Shot a season-best 80% (8-10) from the floor vs. WSU on 1/18/14.
- Scored a career-high 21 points in her first HL game (1/9/14).
- Leading rebounder (7.5) for the Crusaders.
- Averaging 10.1 points per game.
- Grabbed 14 rebounds in both games of the Toledo Invite en route to Most Valuable Player recognition.
- Scored the game-winning put-back with three seconds to play against Toledo.
- Registered 17 points and 14 boards versus FIU for her third double-double of the season.
- Tallied her second double-double at Tennessee Tech, scoring 11 points and collecting 10 rebounds.
- Recorded her first double-double at Illinois on Nov. 12th, throwing in 15 points and grabbing 12 boards.
Jessi Wiedemann
- On a streak of five games where she’s handed out multiple assists.
- Named to Toledo Invite All-Tournament Team after scoring 15 versus Chicago State and 14 against Toledo.
- Double figure scorer in nine games for the Crusaders.
- Has made multiple three-pointers in seven games in 2013-14.
- Snapped a season-starting 0-14 slump from behind the arc at #6 Notre Dame, nailing three treys in a nine-point game.
- Played all 40 minutes in the season opener at Saint Louis and set career highs in blocks (4) and steals (3) while scoring six points.
- Appeared in all 31 games including four starts as a freshman.
- Made collegiate debut versus Indiana.
- Scored 13 points off the bench versus Detroit on Mar. 9th, 2013.
Roster Breakdown
- Valpo welcomes six new players (two freshmen, four transfers) to its team this season.
- Haylee Thompson and Annemarie Hamlet will sit out this season per NCAA transfer eligibilty rules.
- The Brown and Gold boast players from six different states and two countries.
- Liz Horton is the only true senior on this year’s squad.
