March 22, 2008

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Contact: Greg Murphy

PALO ALTO, CALIF. - In the grand scheme of things, the journey to Saturday night's NCAA first round game at Stanford was worth much more to the Cleveland State Vikings than the finish as the under-manned and under-sized Vikings dropped an 85-47 decision to the Cardinal in Maple's Pavilion.

Jayne Appel, who led second-seeded Stanford (31-3) with 33 points and 12 rebounds, almost single-handedly ended the tournament for the Vikings as she poured in 29 points and grabbed eight rebounds in the first half to help the Cardinal pull away.

"All week long, we talked about how excited we were to be here," head coach Kate Peterson Abiad said. "But I think we are all disappointed with how we played today and how we shot the ball. We thought that we could have given a better performance. "However, this season has changed the face of Cleveland State basketball. I am proud of the effort of this team and the journey that we endured this season."

Kailey Klein led CSU with 16 points while senior Robyn Hoying added 10 points and seven rebounds. Klein ends the season with a school-record 659 points this year to raise her career scoring total to 972 points,

Through it all, the Vikings (19-14) fought, scrapped and battled for every loose ball and every rebound, refusing to give up despite a the lack of depth (CSU had just eight healthy players), a lack of height (the Vikings tallest player peaked at 6-0) and a home-court disadvantage (Stanford played on its home court).

For a program that had struggled to find success throughout the previous three seasons, the journey to Palo Alto for the NCAA Championship for the Vikings started last October and included achievements that the program had never accomplished before.

CSU won 19 games, the second-highest single season total in school history, more then the total of the previous three seasons combined.

Picked to finish eighth in the Horizon League this season, CSU went on to post a school-record 10 league wins to finish fourth in the regular season.

The Vikings routed top-seeded Green Bay, 90-66, on its home court en route to winning its first league tournament title, receiving the league's automatic bid to the NCAA Championship.

"I am so proud of my team for the way they fought tonight and for everything that they have accomplished this year," Peterson Abiad said. "Each and every one of these players came into the program knowing what an uphill battle it was going to be to accomplish our goals yet they still came. And because of their commitment, we have accomplished some great things.

"We just didn't have an answer for Appel tonight," Peterson said. "We tried to front her and give help from behind, but we were tentative to leave their shooters open. She scored at will on us and it was really the first time all season that we were abused inside. She is the best center that we have faced this season."

Cleveland State used three-pointers from Angel Roque and Klein to take a 6-5 lead with 15:52 left in the first half.

The Viking offense struggled after that, making just one of its next 18 shots as Stanford stormed out to a 30-8 lead with 6:37 left.

Appel was the primary weapon for the Cardinal. She scored 13 points during a 14-0 Stanford run that put the Cardinal ahead, 19-6.

After Hoying scored with 11:54 left to stop the streak, Stanford ran off 11 more with Appel accounting for six points.

The Vikings closed the half by making six of their final 11 shots (.545) but still trailed 45-22 at the break.

Three-pointers from Klein and Hoying to open the second half pulled CSU to within 47-28 but the Vikings could come no closer.

The Vikings turned to a 2-3 zone in the second half to shut down Appel, but the move opened up scoring opportunities for the rest of the Stanford players.

Cleveland State continued to struggle offensively, making just 19 of its 75 field goal attempts (.253), including an eight-for-29 effort from three-point (.276). The Vikings also shot just three free throws, two of which came after a technical foul on Stanford's Candice Wiggins.

Stanford shot .483 from the field (29-60), including 52-percent (16-31) during the decisive first half. The Cardinal had decisive advantages on the glass, owning a 57-31 rebounding edge, and at the foul line, making 19-of-23 (.913) while CSU made just one of its three free throws.

The loss ends the season for the Vikings with CSU losing just two players off the squad for next year, starting center Robyn Hoying and guard Brittany Korth.