The Cleveland State University women’s basketball team hosted the CSU Invitational from Nov. 26-29, winning all three of their games to move to 7-1 for the season, ahead of the start of Horizon League play Dec. 4

Wednesday 

The Vikings opened the CSU Invitational with a 75-71 victory over St. Bonaventure.

After a seesaw first half, the two teams went into the break with the score tied at 37-37.

CSU opened the third quarter with four straight points on a steal and layup from Jada Leonard and a pair of free throws from Colbi Maples to put the Vikings up 41-37.

However, St. Bonaventure responded with a 4-0 run of its own, before a pair of free throws from Macey Fegan put Cleveland State back on top halfway through the period.

Both teams traded baskets over the next few possessions, with the Bonnies briefly capturing the lead with 3:31 to go, before the Vikings went on a 7-4 run to earn a 56-54 lead heading into the fourth quarter.

Cleveland State slowly expanded its lead, before Leonard scored back-to-back baskets to put the Vikings six points up 64-58 with 3:54 to go.

St. Bonaventure chipped away at the lead over the next few minutes before Ayisse Magassa's layup put the Vikings ahead 70-66 with 35 seconds left on the clock.

Cleveland State closed out the final 19 seconds with a 5-for-6 combined effort from Leonard and Maples from the free throw line, with the Vikings pulling away for the 75-71 victory.

Game Stats

• Four Vikings recorded double-digit points, led by Maples’ 23 points.
• Leonard finished with 17, Izabella Zingaro scored 15 and Fegan recorded 12.
• Cleveland State finished the game shooting 53% from the floor, including a .636 field goal percentage in the fourth quarter alone.
• The Vikings recorded 10 assists on the night, with Leonard leading the team with three.
• The Vikings outrebounded St. Bonaventure 31-28, including seven boards from Zingaro and Sarah Hurley.
• Leonard led Cleveland State’s defense, recording five of the team’s 11 steals on the night.

Friday

The host Vikings earned their second win of the invitational Friday with a dominant 80-41 victory over Valparaiso. 

After trading buckets to begin the game, Cleveland State went on a 12-0 to put the Vikings in control, as they moved to a 14-4 lead. The Vikings continued to dominate the quarter, extending their lead to 23-8.

Valparaiso opened the second quarter with a quick three-pointer, but back-to-back three-pointers from Hurley put Cleveland State up 29-11 less than one minute into the period. The Vikings added another six unanswered points, extending their lead to 35-11 on a Fegan layup. Cleveland State then closed out the first half on a 9-4 run to push the score to 44-15.

Cleveland State continued to control the play throughout the third quarter, putting up 21 points to lead 65-28 heading into the final period.

The Vikings carried that momentum into the fourth quarter, as Magassa and Colby Guinta scored early in the frame to put the Vikings ahead 69-28. That lead held for the game as Cleveland State cruised to an 80-41 victory.

Game Stats

Laurel Rockwood led the Vikings in scoring with 14 points, while Maples recorded 12 and Madison Royal-Davis added in 10.

• Royal-Davis led the team on the boards, recording 10 rebounds on the day.
• Cleveland State shot 47% from the field, including a .615 clip during the second quarter.
• The Vikings combined for 24 takeaways with Leonard recording a team-high four steals.
• The Vikings dished out 16 assists on the day, including five from Leonard and four from Magassa.

Saturday

Cleveland State closed out the CSU Invitational with its third win of the event, earning a 62-59 overtime victory against Radford. 

After holding a 20-18 lead at halftime, the Vikings went up four on Zingaro's layup, before both teams traded baskets over the next few possessions.

Radford went ahead 25-24, before Leonard put the Vikings back in front 27-25 with a three-pointer at the 6:29 mark.

Radford responded with a 10-2 run, but CSU fought back. Hurley's three-pointer followed by Maples' jumper closed the gap to just one point for the Vikings down 35-34. The third quarter ended with Radford ahead 37-35. 

Cleveland State scored the first basket of the fourth quarter to tie the score at 37-37 on a Royal-Davis layup, before Radford regained the lead a few plays later.

After both teams traded baskets throughout much of the quarter, back-to-back baskets from Maples put Cleveland State ahead 50-48 lead with 1:38 left. Radford then fought back with four unanswered points to go ahead 52-50 and force a Vikings time out to reset.

After the break, CSU's Maples scored on a clutch jumper to tie the game at 52-52 with 20 seconds left in regulation. Radford missed the go-ahead jumper in the final seconds, as the Vikings forced their first overtime game of the season.

After the two teams traded baskets to open extra time, Cleveland State went on a 6-0 run, with Zingaro’s layup giving the Vikings a 61-56 lead with just over one minute left to play.

Radford fought back, but a Leonard free throw followed by a strong defensive stop on the Highlander’s final possession secured the 62-59 victory for the Vikings.

Game Stats

• Zingaro led the team in scoring with 21 points, followed by Maples’ 14 points and Leonard’s 13.
• Hurley recorded a team-high nine rebounds, while Zingaro, Fegan and Royal-Davis all grabbed six boards.
• Cleveland State recorded seven steals, with Leonard, Maples and Royal-Davis each recording two.

Up Next

Cleveland State will begin Horizon League play this week, traveling to Michigan where they face Detroit Mercy on Thursday, Dec. 4 at 7 p.m.