Oct. 10, 2005

Contact: Brian McCann

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Match 15 Southern Utah (3-2-5) at Cleveland State (0-14)
Date: Saturday, Oct. 15, 2005
Time: 7:00 p.m. EDT
Site: Krenzler Field (1,680), Cleveland, Ohio
Series: First Meeting

SETTING THE SCENE: Cleveland State takes a break from Horizon League action this week when the Vikings play their final non-conference match of the season when they host Southern Utah on Saturday, Oct. 15 beginning at 7:00 p.m. at Krenzler Field. It is the only match of the week for CSU, which will play its final three regular season contests on the road.

REVIEWING LAST WEEK: The Vikings closed the home portion of their Horizon League schedule with a pair of home matches last week. Here is a synopsis of those contests:

Match 13: Detroit 2, CSU 1 (Oct. 7, Krenzler Field)
Ashley Spahn brought CSU to within a goal when she scored her third marker of the year in the 85th minute but the Vikings could come no closer. CSU limited reigning Horizon League Player of the year Mary Parker to zero points on five shots. Erin Withrow made a career-high 12 saves in goal.

Match 14: Butler 2, CSU 1 (OT) (Oct. 9, Krenzler Field)
Abbie Kakias gave the Vikings a 1-0 lead with a goal in the 18th minute but Butler tied it late in the first half and scored the game-winner just 2:09 into OT in the first overtime match in CSU history. Withrow was again steller in goal, making 11 saves.

PREVIEWING THE VIKINGS: As Cleveland State heads into the final weeks of the 2005 season, the Vikings are still looking for the first win in program history. Still, CSU bears little resemblance to the inaugural Viking squad that went 0-20 a year ago, and the improvement has become more and more visible every match. Cleveland State is coming off a weekend which saw it drop a pair of one goal decisions to Detroit (2-1) and Butler (2-1), the teams picked to finish second and third, respectively in the Horizon League this year. The improvement has come at the midfield where sophomores Heather Clapacs, an honorable mention All-Ohio choice last year, and Amber Rasmussen and freshman Lisa Conway have helped to control play and create offense. Although battered by injuries this year, the defense has been aided recently by a pair of walkons, sophomores Ashley Spahn and Andrea Loejos, who have stepped into the starting lineup and provided stability. Offensively, Spahn leads the team with three goals while sophomore Jennifer Wieand and redshirt freshman Abbie Kakias have tallied five points each.

JUNIOR NIGHT?: One by-product of the youth of the Vikings this year is that even though CSU closes its home schedule against Southern Utah this week, there will be no Senior Night ceremonies before the match because the Vikings have no seniors. The closest thing that CSU has to a senior is junior Melissa Wood, who is in her fourth year at Cleveland State but has another year of eligibility remaining. The rest of the roster is evenly split with 10 freshman and 10 sophomores.

WHAT A DIFFERENCE A YEAR MAKES: Despite going winless last week in matches against Detroit and Butler, the improvement that the Vikings have made since last year was obvious simply by comparing the final scores of those matches. CSU lost at Butler, 6-0 last year but took the Bulldogs to overtime on Sunday. The improvement is even more dramatic against Detroit, a team that CSU lost 13-0 to last year. In that game, Titan Mary Parker, who went on to earn Horizon League Player of the Year honors, racked up five goals and two assists. In the rematch last week, a 2-1 Titan win, Parker took five shots but was held scoreless.

WITHROW TAKES OVER HORIZON LEAD: Freshman goalie Erin Withrow has stepped up her performance over the course of the last seven matches, recording 62 saves to take over the Horizon League lead with 89 saves this season. Withrow made a career-high 12 saves against Detroit last Friday and followed that up with 11 more stops against Butler, her fourth double-figure save match of the season and third in a row. Youngstown State keeper Jessica Yarter is second in the league with 75 saves.

HOME SWEET HOME: After not playing a match at Krenzler Field for the first 24 contests in program history, the Vikings will end a stretch which has seem them play eight out of 11 matches at home when they host Southern Utah on Saturday. Included in that period is the current school-record four-game home stand.

BRINGING THEIR A-GAME: The improved offensive performance of the Vikings this year is largely due to the quartet of sophomore Amber Rasmussen (1) and freshmen Ashley Walchack (2), Ashley Spahn (3) and Abbie Kakias (2), who have combined to score eight of the nine Viking goals this season. The A-theme is not a new one. Last year, Rasmussen had a hand in all four CSU goals, finishing as the team's scoring leader with one goal and three assists.

CSU FINDS OFFENSIVE BALANCE: The improved offensive play of the Vikings this year is a byproduct of the improved depth up front. Through 14 matches, six players have recorded double figure shot totals. Jennifer Wieand leads the way with 23 shots, 15 of which have been on goal. She is followed by Abbie Kakias (16), Heather Clapacs (14), Ashley Walchack (14), Ashley Spahn (11) and Lisa Conway (11). Last year, only three players reached double figures in the stat, with Clapacs leading the way with 43 shots.

NEXT UP: The Vikings resume Horizon League play with three straight road matches, starting with an Oct. 21 contest at Wright State.