CLEVELAND, Ohio – The Cleveland State women's basketball team had their first and only exhibition game of the 2013-14 season Sunday afternoon, defeating Ursuline College, 87-59. The Vikings were paced by the junior duo of Imani Gordon and Cori Coleman, who both posted double-doubles in the exhibition victory.
Coleman posted a team-high 28 points on 12-made field goals along with a team-high 15 rebounds, while Gordon tallied 22 points and 13 boards. Adesuwa Aideyman also tallied double-digit points for the Vikings, notching 12 including a trio of three-pointers to go along with four assists.
Cleveland State's four freshmen all saw action in their first collegiate game – Brooke Smith posting six points and five rebounds, Chrishna Butler notching three points and three boards, Khayla Livingston posting three rebounds and three steals and Olivia Voskuhl grabbing two boards.
After Ursuline was able to bring the game within two points (11-9) early on in the opening half, Cleveland State went on an 11-0 run to gain their first double-digit lead of the contest at the 22-9 mark. During this stretch, the Vikings had five points from Gordon, four points from Coleman and one from Brooke Smith.
Just 1:33 later, the Vikings went on another scoring run, posting nine straight points to earn a 35-14 advantage with 4:43 left in the frame. CSU then ended the frame scoring 13 of the final 20 points, including an Aideyman three-pointer with just three seconds remaining.
The Vikings opened the second half on a 12-8 run, gaining a 30-point advantage with 15:49 left in the contest. CSU cruised throughout the final 15 minutes then, as Ursuline was only able to close the gap to 23 points (62-39), as the Vikings extended their lead to 30 points multiple times throughout the final part of the contest. Over the final 1:30, CSU scored seven points – including four from Allison Mitchell – and held the Arrows scoreless, earning the 87-59 victory.
Video: Head Coach Kate Peterson Abiad Postgame Comments
Cleveland State will open the 2013-14 regular season on Friday (Nov. 8), traveling to Butler for a 7:00 p.m. contest.
