SETTING THE SCENE
The Cleveland State women's basketball team will open the New Year at home this week, beginning a four-game homestand by hosting Purdue Fort Wayne at 7:00 p.m. on Friday, January 6. Entering the contest, Cleveland State stands at 13-1 overall this year and 4-0 in #HLWBB play, while Purdue Fort Wayne is currently 5-10 overall and 2-3 in Horizon League action.

A WIN ON FRIDAY WOULD…
Extend Cleveland State's current win streak to 14 straight games…Keep the Vikings perfect in #HLWBB play…Move Cleveland State to 7-0 when playing inside the Wolstein Center this season.

THE CLEVELAND STATE/PURDUE FORT WAYNE SERIES
Friday's game will be the 13th meeting between the two teams, with Cleveland State owning an 11-1 advantage in the all-time series. The Vikings have won seven straight games against the Mastodons, including a season sweep over Purdue Fort Wayne last year. 

SCOUTING THE MASTODONS
Purdue Fort Wayne enters Friday's game with a 5-10 overall record this season, including a 2-3 mark against Horizon League opponents…The Mastodons' two #HLWBB wins came against Detroit Mercy (58-49) and RMU (52-41)…Most recently, Purdue Fort Wayne has dropped back-to-back games against Youngstown State and IUPUI…Earlier this year, Purdue Fort Wayne was selected to finish eighth in the #HLWBB Preseason Poll, while Shayla Sellers was named Preseason Second Team…The Mastodons rank second among league teams in blocked shots (3.8), steals (9.8) and turnover margin (3.60).

LAST TIME OUT…
Cleveland State closed out the calendar year with a 70-52 victory at Robert Morris, extending its win streak to 13 straight games. Three Vikings finished with double-digit points, including Destiny Leo with 21. For the 10th straight game the Vikings were able to hold the advantage on the boards, as Cleveland State outrebounded the Colonials 44-40. The Vikings also combined for six blocked shots, including two from Carmen Villalobos.

VIKINGS EXTEND PROGRAM RECORD WITH 13-GAME WIN STREAK
After notching a program milestone at Youngstown State on Thursday, December 29 when the Vikings posted their 12th straight win, Cleveland State extended this record to 13 consecutive games with a 70-52 victory at Robert Morris on Saturday, December 31. The Vikings, who set the previous record with 11 straight wins during the 2019-20 campaign, are one of just five Division I teams with a current win streak of 13+ games.

VIKINGS STAY PERFECT IN #HLWBB PLAY
Cleveland State returned to Horizon League play with a 2-0 weekend last time out, picking up a 77-68 victory at Youngstown State and a 70-52 win at Robert Morris to improve to 4-0 in #HLWBB play this season. Currently in the third week of league play, Cleveland State is the only team to be undefeated in #HLWBB action, while a win against Purdue Fort Wayne would put the Vikings at 5-0 in Horizon League play for the first time in program history.

HOME-SWEET-HOME
For the first time in three weeks the Vikings will be playing inside the friendly confines of the Wolstein Center this weekend, kicking off a four-game homestand against Purdue Fort Wayne on Friday. Friday's game against the Mastodons will be the seventh of 15 scheduled home games for the Vikings this season, and the first since December 4 when the Vikings earned an 86-30 victory against Detroit Mercy.

…VIKINGS IN THE WOLSTEIN CENTER
So far this season Cleveland State owns a perfect 6-0 record inside the Wolstein Center, including a 2-0 mark in #HLWBB play. Over the last two seasons, the Vikings have posted an 18-4 record when playing at home, and own an overall record of 42-17 inside the Wolstein Center during head coach Chris Kielsmeier's tenure.

VIKINGS IN THE MID-MAJOR RANKINGS
Entering the weekend, Cleveland State is ranked sixth in the College Insider Women's Mid-Major Top-25 Poll, moving up three spots after going 2-0 during its YSU/RMU roadswing. The Vikings are one of three Horizon League teams to be ranked in the top-25, as Green Bay (12) and Youngstown State (21) are also ranked this week.

CLEVELAND STATE NOTCHES PERFECT 8-0 RECORD DURING DECEMBER
After picking up a 70-52 victory at RMU last time out, the Vikings capped off a perfect 8-0 month of December, marking the second straight season that Cleveland State has gone undefeated during a calendar month (went 5-0 during November last season). This also marked the first time since the 2012-13 campaign that the Vikings posted a perfect record during the month of December specifically, as they went 6-0 during December of 2012.

REISMA PICKS UP #HLWBB FRESHMAN OF THE WEEK HONORS...AGAIN
Earlier this week, forward Jordana Reisma was named the Horizon League Freshman of the Week, earning the honor for a league-leading third time this season. Reisma averaged 9.0 points on a .750 field goal clip in the two games last week, including a season-high 14 points on 5-for-5 from the field at RMU. The 14-point performance marked Reisma's first double-digit scoring game of the season, while she also combined for eight rebounds and one blocked shot on the week.

WILLIAMS & LEO FROM THE FREE THROW LINE
Entering the weekend Deja Williams and Destiny Leo are the top two free throw shooters in the Horizon League, Williams with a .950 clip (38-for-40) and Leo with a .918 clip (56-for-61). Nationally, Williams ranks sixth in the category while Leo ranks 13th among Division I players. Last time out, this duo combined for a 17-for-17 effort from the free throw line at RMU, while Williams has a stretch of five straight games that she hasn't missed a free throw going 19-for-19 during this span.

…LEO IN THE RECORD BOOK
Destiny Leo currently sits at the top of the CSU Career Record Book with a .901 free throw percentage, entering Friday's game shooting 219-for-243 from the line on her career. Leo is currently the only Viking in program history with a .900+ clip from the free throw line (minimum 200 attempts), while she also set a single-season program record with a .906 free throw percentage last year (125-for-138). In addition, Leo is currently first in the CSU Career Record Book with a .388 three-point field goal percentage and ninth with 161 total three-pointers made.

CLEVELAND STATE ON THE DEFENSIVE END
Fourteen games into the 2022-23 campaign Cleveland State leads the Horizon League in rebounding (42.4), steals (10.07) and blocked shots (4.00), serving as one of the best defensive teams in the league. Through the first eight weeks, the Vikings have recorded double-digit steals six times and have notched 4+ blocked shots during eight games. Individually, Brittni Moore is tied for seventh among #HLWBB players averaging a team-best 6.2 rebounds per game, while Jordana Reisma is tied for second with 1.3 blocks per game and Deja Williams is tied for third averaging a team-best 1.5 steals per game. 

HEAD COACH CHRIS KIELSMEIER
The Vikings will be under the direction of fifth-year head coach Chris Kielsmeier during the 2022-23 campaign, who owns a 79-50 record at Cleveland State and a 495-166 overall record in 23 seasons as a head coach. Kielsmeier, who joined the Vikings as the seventh head coach in program history prior to the 2018-19 season, is one of just two active #HLWBB coaches to reach the 450-win milestone.

UP NEXT
The Vikings will continue their current four-game homestand on Sunday, January 8, welcoming IUPUI for a 2:00 p.m. contest.