Brooklyn, N.Y. -- Youngstown State could not overcome a dry spell late in the first half that resulted in a 68-54 loss to Long Island on Friday afternoon in the opening game of the LIU Turkey Classic.
     The Penguins led 19-16 with 6:34 remaining in the first half but were held without a field goal for the rest of the half as the Blackbirds went on a 16-2 run.
     Ashley Pendleton scored a career-high 18 points for the Penguins, who will take on Albany at 2 p.m. in the tournament's consolation game.
     YSU scored the firsts four points of the game and led by the same margin with 9:08 remaining when Pendleton's bucket made the score 15-11. LIU scored the next five points to take a 16-15 lead, its first nearly four minutes, but YSU scored four straight to go up 19-16.
     LIU went on to score 11 straight points and hit six of its next seven shots, including going 4-for-4 from behind the arc, en route to building a 35-23 halftime advantage.
     The Blackbirds then scored the first 13 points of the second half and led 48-23 at the 16:10 mark. LIU was up by as many as 26 before YSU closed the gap late thanks to Pendleton's eight points in the final 3:16.
     Valerie Nainima led all scorers with 19 points as one of four LIU players in double figures. The Blackbirds finished 9-of-18 from behind the arc compared to a 1-for-10 showing from the Penguins.
     YSU outshot Long Island 43 percent to 39 percent in the first half but was hurt by 13 turnovers that resulted in 16 points for LIU.