Women's Basketball Preview, Part 3: Cleveland State

Oct. 25, 2007

A year after struggling to find ways to consistently win games, the 2007-08 Cleveland State women's basketball team hopes to use the lessons learned from last season and work its way up the Horizon League standings.The Vikings return four starters, including last season's Horizon League Newcomer of the Year Kailey Klein, and 10 letterwinners from last year's squad that went 8-22 and tied for sixth place in the league standings at 5-11.

However, of the 22 losses, 10 were by 10 points or less, including six losses by five points or fewer. That is a good sign for fifth-year head coach Kate Peterson Abiad as seven of her top 11 players from last season were first or second year players.

"We relied heavily on freshmen and sophomores last season, especially once we got into the league schedule," Peterson Abiad said. "It was a process to learn how to win with such a young team, but I thought we really matured throughout the season and gained a lot of confidence during the league games.

"We are still going to be one of the youngest teams in the league this season, but it is exciting because we have the core of our team coming back," Peterson Abiad continued. "The players know what to expect and understand the style of play in the Horizon League."

Combo Guards To Lead CSU
This year's backcourt could be one of the most potent since Peterson Abiad arrived at CSU as there are four players who are capable combo guards, a mix between point guards and shooting guards.

Senior Brittany Korth, sophomore twin sisters Angel and Jessica Roque and freshman Shawnita Garland will rotate a majority of the minutes in the backcourt.

"I am very comfortable with any of the four running the point," Peterson Abiad said. "Each of them has their own strengths and can run our system. We have point guards who can see the floor and push the ball, as well as finish at the basket or spot up and shoot."

Korth has an uncanny ability to find open teammates in scoring positions as evidenced by her 222 career assists, which are 55 shy of moving into 10th place on the all-time list at CSU.

"Brit has led the team for the last three seasons," Peterson Abiad said. "Everyone wants to be her best friend because she can get the ball to her teammates in good scoring positions. She is capable of leading the league in assists."

Angel Roque is the truest point guard on the roster and will run the show 99 percent of the time she is on the floor. Last season, she tied Korth for the team lead with 75 assists, but did so playing 165 fewer minutes than Korth as she did not assume a starting role until the 20th game of the season.

Meanwhile, her twin sister Jessica will see a majority of her minutes at off-guard as she is one of the top shooters on the squad after hitting 30 percent of her three-point attempts as a freshman. She finished second on the team in scoring at 8.2 points per game.

"Jess has a knack for taking and knocking down clutch shots," Peterson Abiad said. "She is always looking to the basket and is relentless at attacking the basket and scoring."

The wild card in the backcourt is the newcomer Garland, who will make things happen on the court with her quickness and speed. She was a second team all-state honoree as a senior at Capital H.S. when she finished first in the conference in steals, third in assists and scoring and fourth in three-pointers made.

"Shawnita has the greatest quickness and speed of any player I have coached," Peterson Abiad said.

Vikings Loaded On The Wing
The Vikings return three key components on the wing in Klein and juniors Dominique Butler and Natalie Miller. However, all three can slide over to the power forward slot if CSU decides to play small ball.

Klein returns after earning Horizon League Newcomer of the Year accolades a season ago when she led the team and finished 14th in the conference in scoring (11.0 ppg).

She accomplished those feats despite coming off the bench for the first 13 contests of the season and scoring just 18 points in the first nine games of the year. After earning a spot in the starting rotation, Klein averaged 15.6 points per game and scored in double figures in 11 of the final 16 games of the season, including a career-best 33 in a win at Detroit.

"Kailey is a pure scorer," Peterson Abiad said. "She feeds off her offensive abilities and can create scoring opportunities from anywhere on the floor. She loves going to the basket and creating contact to get to the free throw line."

Butler is a two-time league all-defensive team selection after leading the conference in steals in each of her first two seasons. She is the first player from CSU to earn the honor more than one time during a career.

"Dominique has really increased her intensity and made big strides from last season," Peterson Abiad said. "She is so active on the defensive end and deflects a lot of passes to help create easy offensive opportunities for us in transition."

Miller is a hard-nosed player who is one of the team's top defenders and hardest workers. She posseses the ability to bang around on the boards, but can also step outside and shoot jumpers from the perimeter.

"Natalie does so many little things to benefit us and is the kind of player that every team needs to be successful," Peterson Abiad said.

Lack Of Bigs Not A Big Concern
CSU enters the season with a big question mark on the inside as the team lacks a true center and has just four post players on the roster. Those four boast a combined 101 games of experience, but senior Robyn Hoying claims 81 of those.

However, Peterson Abiad sees it as an opportunity to employ multiple four guard sets and play an aggressive style of defense, while forcing the opposition's big players to guard smaller players outside on the perimeter.

"What we lack in height, we more than make-up in heart," Peterson Abiad said. "We are still going to be a defensive-minded team and pursue the boards hard. The defensive intensity and anticipation that we are going to play with will disrupt a lot of offenses and hopefully lead to easy baskets in transition."

Hoying, sophomores Stephaine Crosley and Katie Baxter and freshman Justine Hayes will be featured in the forward rotation.

"I will try to have at least one of them on the floor at all times," Peterson Abiad said. "But that could change, especially if we want to go with a small lineup."

Hoying is the most experienced of the four post players playing all 30 last season off the bench. She is one of the top low-block defenders and will be counted on for an increased offensive role this season after averaging 5.6 points per game over the final five contests last season.Crosley, who missed all but 12 games last season due to an injury, will give the Vikings a strong inside option, as well as a vocal leader on the court. Crosley started the first nine contests of her career and averaged 8.0 points and 4.8 rebounds per game before the injury cut her season short.

"Cros is a warrior on the floor," Peterson Abiad said. "She brings energy and intensity to the gym everyday and the team really feeds off her. She battles for every loose ball and is a tremendous rebounder."Baxter has been limited during her first two seasons at CSU due to a medical condition, but appears to be fully recovered and ready to contribute. She played in only eight games last season after redshirting in 2005-06.

Hayes provides the Vikings with a physical presence down low after earning city player of the year honors in Madison, Wis., as a junior and senior.

"Justine is physically strong and likes posting up on the block, but also has good touch from the outside," Peterson Abiad said. "She is going to have to make the transition to a faster paced collegiate game, but she is going to give us some good minutes this year."

Schedule With Many Miles Awaits Vikings
After playing a school-record 15 home games last season, the Vikings will only be at home 13 times this year, including the season opener on Nov. 9 against Wisconsin, a team that enters the campaign ranked 20th in the nation after earning runner-up honors in the 2007 WNIT.

"We are excited to open the season at home against the 20th ranked team in the country," Peterson Abiad said. "They had a very successful run last year and will give us a good idea of where we stand as a program."

Following a home game with Akron one week later, the Vikings will head to the Great Northwest to take part in the Carrs/Great Alaska Shootout prior to the Thanksgiving holiday. CSU will play Alaska Anchorage in an opening round game on Nov. 20 before playing in the championship or consolation game the following day against either Bradley or Santa Clara.

"We've been on the waiting list for three years to go to Alaska," Peterson Abiad said. "The tournament will give us a chance to compete against some quality teams, but will also be a learning experience for the team."

CSU returns home to host Ohio on Nov. 26, but then hits the road for five consecutive games in December leading into the holiday break.

"Playing five straight road games in December is just another challenge that we will have to overcome as a team," Peterson Abiad said. "It will give us an opportunity to grow up and show that we can compete on the road. You need to win on the road to be a successful team and there is no better place to start than in the preseason before the league schedule hits."

CSU's final nonconfernce game is slated for Dec. 29 at home against American. Five days later, the Vikings will welcome Loyola to the Wolstein Center for the first of 18 straight Horizon League games leading up to the conference tournament which will take place from March 10-16.

-- Story provided by the Cleveland State office of sports information.