HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. — For the second time this past week, a Cleveland State basketball team found itself losing a heartbreaker in Northern Kentucky.
This time, it was the Vikings' women's squad that came away on the wrong end, falling to the Norse 73-69 Sunday afternoon. Kennedy Igo's 3-pointer with just four seconds left put NKU ahead for good, just three days after Marques Warrick downed CSU's men's team with a long shot as time expired.
Cleveland State (17-3, 8-2 Horizon League) lost for the second time in two matchups following a 16-game winning streak. The Vikes had earned a 103-72 victory over Wright State on Friday, but on this occasion found themselves trailing the Norse by seven at the half.
In the fourth quarter, however, CSU came alive, with Destiny Leo scoring eight of her 17 points and Brittni Moore leading the way with a game-high 20. The Vikings led by as many as three and found themselves still up one with under a minute to go, but Igo's clutch shot off a missed Leo layup threw momentum back in favor of NKU. Deja Williams then missed a potential game-winning 3 for the Vikes, and two free throws by Ivy Turner with less than a second left provided the final scoring.
Igo had 11 points off the bench and made 3 of 5 from long distance. Lindsey Duvall led Northern Kentucky (12-7, 6-4) with 19 points as well as 11 rebounds.
With the loss, Cleveland State moves back into a three-way tie for first in the conference with Green Bay and Youngstown State. The Vikings will continue their road trip Thursday night against Detroit Mercy, one of the worst teams in the league.