Contact: Renee Adam
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CLEVELAND, Ohio - With three players in double-figures the Cleveland State women's basketball team was able to get back in the win column Saturday, posting a 58-54 victory over Valparaiso on Senior Day. The win puts CSU at 13-15 overall this season and 5-10 in the Horizon League, while Valparaiso falls to 9-18 (4-10).
Prior to Saturday's contest the Vikings honored the 2013 senior class of Honesty King, Kaila Montgomery and Shalonda Winton.
Winton led the Vikings with her 16th double-double of the season with 21 points and 12 rebounds, while she also tallied three blocks and four steals. Imani Gordon notched a career-high 17 points - including 11 during the second half - while Honesty Kingadded 10 points for the Vikings.
After going into halftime trailing by two (27-25), the Vikings were able to gain their first lead since the 4:12 mark of the first half on back-to-back baskets from Winton at the 18:08 mark (29-27). An 11-2 run over the next three minutes gave the lead back to Valparaiso though, as they held a seven-point advantage (38-31) with 14:24 left to play.
The Vikings were able to chip away at the lead over the next 4:03, posting 12 unanswered points and regaining the lead on a Winton three-pointer at the 11:56 mark. With 10:21 remaining, CSU held a five-point lead at 43-38, but the Crusaders responded with 11 straight points of their own to take back a six-point lead before Winton and Gordon brought the Vikings back into the contest.
Winton and Gordon combined for six points over a 30-second span to tie the game for the fifth time at 49-49 with 4:12 left on the clock. Valparaiso was able to regain a brief one-point lead following their seventh three-pointer of the game at the 3:30 mark, but the Vikings closed out the contest on a 7-2 run - giving CSU the four-point victory.
During the final stretch, Cleveland State got four points from Gordon, two from Winton and one from King. The Vikings were able to force Valparaiso into four missed shots during the final 2:52, and grabbed the defensive rebound after each shot to stay in control of the contest.
The Vikings will wrap up the regular season next Thursday (March 9), traveling to Wright State for a 7:00 p.m. contest.
