Contact: Renee Adam
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CLEVELAND, Ohio - With nine rebounds against UIC Monday evening, Shalonda Winton reached the 1,000-rebound mark on her career and tied her career-high with 32 points - leading the Cleveland State women's basketball team to a 75-69 victory over the Flames. Monday's victory improves CSU to 12-11 on the season and 4-6 in Horizon League action, while UIC falls to 7-15 (3-6).
Winton, who eclipsed the 1,000 rebound mark in the first half, becomes just the second Viking to reach the milestone and the sixth Horizon League player to do so. Winton finished the contest with 1,004 career boards, just 27 rebounds shy of becoming the all-time leader at Cleveland State.
Along with Winton, Cori Coleman and Kiersten Green also tallied double-digit points against the Flames, Coleman with 14 and Green with 13. Coleman also added seven rebounds and four assists, while Green notched five assists and five boards. Haley Schmittposted six points and six rebounds for the Vikings, and tied her career-high with two blocks.
After trailing by as many as 13 during the opening half, CSU was able to close the gap to seven-points heading into halftime with a score of 33-26. Over the final 3:20 of the first stanza Cleveland State went on an 8-2 run, with baskets from Green, Coleman and Winton to come within seven points heading into the second half.
The Vikings slowly chipped away at the UIC lead over the first part of the second frame, coming within one at 49-48 and taking the lead with a Winton three-pointer at the 8:02 mark (51-49). Winton's three-pointer was her fourth of five for the contest - which set a career-best for the senior. Over a span of 4:53 Cleveland State went on a 10-2 run with six points from Winton and four from Green to gain CSU's third lead of the contest at the 51-49 mark.
UIC then responded with a 12-7 run of its own over the next 3:05 to regain a three-point lead at 61-58, but it wouldn't last long as the Vikings regained control with a pair of jumpers from Winton and Schmitt on the next two possessions.
Cleveland State was able to extend its lead to nine points with just 26-seconds remaining, but a determined UIC offense kept the Flames in the game, closing the gap to five points (71-66) following a pair of baskets in a span of just two-seconds.
The Vikings were able to hold strong though, closing out the contest with a 4-for-4 performance from the free throw line, with shots from Coleman and Schmitt, helping Cleveland State earn the six-point victory.
Cleveland State shot 46-percent from the floor (24-52) against the Flames, including a .577 clip (15-26) during the second half. The Vikings posted a season-high nine blocks on the night, including a career-high five from Winton.
Next up for Cleveland State will be the annual roadtrip to Wisconsin - facing Green Bay on Thursday, Feb. 14 and Milwaukee on Saturday, Feb. 16.
