Akron, Ohio -- Akron scored the first nine points of the game and withstood several runs by a gritty Youngstown State squad in a 75-63 win on Saturday at James A. Rhodes Arena.

YSU freshman Brandi Brown posted her third career double-double, scoring a career-high 24 points and grabbing 14 rebounds.

Youngstown State falls to 0-8 while Akron improves to 4-4. The Zips defeated YSU for just the third time in the last 14 meetings.

Akron went on runs of 9-0 and 10-1 in the first half and a mini 6-0 run in the second half that gave the Zips a 14-point,  50-36 lead with 14:01 to play. Akron went up by as many as 17 with just under five minutes to play, but YSU battled its way back and trailed just 71-63 with 1:12 left.

Kenya Middlebrooks missed a 3-point attempt that would have cut the score to five for the first time since the first half, and Akron scored the final four points for the final margin.

"I have a little smile on my face because we're gritty, we have a lot of heart, and we're never going to give up," YSU Head Coach Cindy Martin said. "It was amazing to see those five that I had in the game - Makala, Macey, Kenya, Rachael and Brandi - not give up. They pretty much played the last eight minutes straight. We just didn't stop them enough in the first half."

Brown was 10-for-17 from the floor and 4-for-5 from the charity stripe to lead YSU. Macey Nortey played the entire game and scored 14 points to go along with her six assists. Middlebrooks added 14 points and was 5-for-5 from the free-throw line.

"Brandi Brown had a great performance today, and she's a good player." Martin said. "I sure we wish a few more girls to keep fresh legs out there at times."

YSU was 18-for-23 (78.3 percent) from the free-throw line, which was a big improvement from the 53 percent it was shooting entering the game. The Penguins, though, went 1-for-15 from 3-point range despite shooting 35 percent through their first seven contests. Overall, YSU shot 34.4 percent, and Akron shot 42.4 percent.

YSU had a season-low three steals, but it forced 15 turnovers with its pressure defense, nine of which came in the second half.

Kara Murphy scored 11 of her 16 points in the second half to lead Akron, and Rachel Tecca had 13 points on 6-for-9 shooting.

Akron scored the first nine point of the first half and led 15-4 on a Murphy free throw with 14:09 remaining. The Zips led 19-8 when Youngstown State went on an 8-2 run to get within five on a Middlebrooks triple at the 9:47 mark.

Akron scored the next four points out of a timeout, and Rachael Manuel hit a jumper with 8:27 remaining that made the score 25-18. That was the Penguins' last field goal of the opening half as their final eight points came from the free throw line. YSU made 11-of-14 from the stripe in the period, but Akron closed out the half on a 10-1 run once the Penguins cut the margin to 30-25.

Kyle Baumgartner had 11 points and seven rebounds in the half, making made 4-of-5 from the floor and both of her free-throw attempts. Brown led YSU with 12 points and six rebounds, and she had nine of the Penguins' first 13 points in the first 10 minutes.

Youngstown State is off for the next eight days for finals. The Guins' next contest will be Dec. 13 at Buffalo.