Feb. 1, 2007

Box Score

Cleveland, Ohio - Senior Jenna Real scored 20 points to reach 1,000 for career and Loyola recorded assists on 23 of 28 field goals to earn its second-straight win, a 74-61 triumph over Cleveland State tonight at the Wolstein Center. The Ramblers, which won consecutive games for the first time all season, improve to 6-14 (4-5 Horizon) while dumping the Vikings to 5-17 (2-7) on the year.

Both teams got off to extremely slow starts on the offensive end but Loyola was able to grab the early lead. An offensive rebound and put-back from Nicole Garcia gave the Ramblers an 8-1 lead after five minutes and a tough defense held the home team without a field goal until Angel Roque drove the lane for a hoop almost six minutes into the game. Loyola continued to press forward and consecutive hoops from Jessica Hylton helped the visitors open up a 13-point bulge (17-4) at the 10:58 mark. A Dominique Butler hoop on the ensuing possession - just CSU's second basket in the opening 10 minutes - helped start an 8-0 run over a three-minute span that cut the LU lead to five, but the Ramblers found their footing shortly thereafter. Maggie McCloskey drained a long two-pointer coming out of a timeout and Loyola refocused on the defensive end, holding Cleveland State to just two points over the last seven minutes of the half. Loyola's 15-2, period-ending run was capped by a Marquise Hanser three-pointer from the corner with five seconds left, allowing the Ramblers to take a commanding 34-21 lead into intermission.

Loyola came out of the gates strong in the second half, surging to its largest lead of the night (40-21) after McCloskey found a streaking Real on the break. Cleveland State began to chip away and got within 11 on a Natalie Miller free throw, but Hanser and McCloskey buried back-to-back treys to hike the lead back to 17 with under nine minutes to play. The Vikings made one last push and sliced the deficit to 10 (53-43) with 5:49 showing but Hanser knocked down another triple and the Ramblers cruised from there. The only drama that remained was whether Real would get the 20 points she needed to reach 1,000 and she was able to do so, knocking down a pair of free throws in the final minute to become the 18th Rambler to reach the milestone.

Real hit 9-of-13 from the floor for her 20 points and she was matched by Hanser, who added seven rebounds, six assists (against just one turnover) and four steals. McCloskey also reached double digits, finishing with 15 points and seven assists, while Jennifer Juergens added nine points, all in the second half. Kailey Klein was the sole Viking in double figures, finishing with a game-high 23 points.

Loyola shoots for its third straight win on Saturday afternoon when it makes the short trip south to Youngstown State. Tip-off is set for 4:15 p.m. CT.