The Youngstown State women's basketball team will play just its third home game in the first five weeks of the 2012-13 season when it hosts Wilmington College on Sunday at 3:05 p.m. Live audio of the game will be streamed exclusively on 570wkbn.com, and live video and live stats will be available through YSUsports.com.
Sunday's game ends a busy stretch for the Penguins in which they will have played six games in four cities in 15 days. YSU has gone 3-2 in the first five games of the stretch and is 6-2 for the season. That is its best start since the 1999-2000 season. After Sunday's game, the Penguins will have just three games the rest of the month with finals week next week and an eight-day break for the holidays.
Youngstown State earned a split on its previous road trip to Indianapolis and Cincinnati. The Penguins battled through a grueling 58-57 win at IUPUI on Monday, then dropped a 57-46 decision at Cincinnati on Wednesday. YSU got 25 points and 18 rebounds from Brandi Brown and shot 50 percent as a team in the win over the Jaguars. The Penguins fought through defensive pressure from IUPUI all night that caused 37 turnovers, but YSU held a 47-22 edge in rebounding. On Wednesday, YSU was within one point of the Bearcats with 2:20 left before Cincinnati closed out the game on a 12-2 run. The Penguins were held to just 30.4 percent shooting in the loss despite making 9-of-25 from 3-point range.
Wilmington enters Sunday's contest with a 6-2 mark following a 66-61 victory at Marietta on Saturday. The Quakers have won five straight contests and have not lost since Nov. 21. Senior forward Brianna Peters averages a team-high 9.8 points and is one of 20 Quakers who have appeared in a game.
The Penguins will be off during the week for finals, and they'll resume play at West Virginia on Dec. 16 at 2 p.m. The Mountaineers are ranked 23rd in this week's USA Today Coaches Poll.
Tickets & Promotions
Tickets are available for purchase on YSUsports.com and at the Beeghly Center ticket office on gameday starting at 2 p.m. Fans in attendance will receive a YSU basketball schedule magnet, courtesy of Coca-Cola, State Farm and 27 WKBN.
Game Recap vs. Cincinnati
Cincinnati outscored YSU 12-2 over the final 2:20 to close out a 57-46 victory on Wednesday evening at Fifth Third Arena.
The Penguins found themselves down 13-3 after a slow start but fought their way back and led 33-28 with just over 13 minutes left. YSU trailed 45-44 with 2:44 remaining.
YSU shot a season-low 30.4 percent, and Liz Hornberger was the only player who shot above 50 percent. Hornberger finished with 13 points, and Brandi Brown had 20 points and 10 rebounds.
- After YSU took its 33-28 lead, Cincinnati went on a 14-1 run as the Penguins went without a field goal for eight minutes.
- When YSU got within one point at 45-44, Cincinnati scored in its next possession, then blocked a shot and forced a shot clock violation. UC followed with an old-fashioned three-point play and made 8-of-9 from the free throw line in the final 1:20.
- YSU's top three scorers entering the contest combined to shoot 11-for-49.
- Brandi Brown moved into fifth place on YSU's career scoring list with her 20-point effort. She passed Margaret Somple and Caroline McCombs.
- Liz Hornberger scored in double figures for the fifth time in eight games. She had three double-digit scoring games in her first two seasons combined.
- Cincinnati took advantage of its size by scoring 30 of its 57 points in the paint. The Bearcats also had 19 points come at the free-throw line.
- YSU did not allow a 3-pointer for the first time this season and for the third time in the past two seasons.
Scouting Wilmington
Wilmington is 6-2 heading into Sunday's game with YSU following a 66-61 victory over Marietta on Saturday. The Quakers have won five straight games since losing 73-44 at DePauw on Nov. 21. Two of those wins have been against OAC opponents, including Marietta. The Quakers were 13-14 last season, but they finished above .500 in 15 straight seasons prior. Brianna Peters averages a team-high 9.8 points and is one of 20 Quakers who saw action in the first seven games.
All-Time vs. Wilmington
YSU has never played Wilmington in women's basketball.
All-Time vs. OAC Teams
The Penguins are 6-2 all-time against teams currently in the Ohio Athletic Conference. Their last game against an OAC team came on Jan. 16, 1980 when they beat John Carroll 121-49.
6-2: Best Start in 13 Years
- Youngstown State is 6-2 for the first time since the 1997-98 season with its wins over Pittsburgh, Buffalo, Bryant, Miami (Ohio), Stony Brook and IUPUI. The victories at Pittsburgh (by 14) and Miami (by 20) are among the best wins by the program in at least a decade.
- YSU won its first three road games for the first time since the 1997-98 season.
- The Penguins had their first four-game winning streak since the 2007-08 season. They won four straight games by double digits for the first time since 1997-98.
- YSU won five games in November for just the second time in school history, matching the 1997-98 team.
- The Penguins beat Pitt and a current Big East team for the first time since 1991. YSU also earned its first win over a team currently in a BCS conference since 1997.
Boldon's Wilmington Connection
YSU head coach Bob Boldon was an assistant at Wilmington during the 1998-99 season under current Quakers head coach Jerry Scheve. It was his second year as a college assistant. Wilmington went 20-4 and won a regular season and tournament title that season. Scheve is one of three coaches Boldon has been an assistant with. Boldon also coached with Jodi Kest (now at Akron) and Karl Smesko (Now at Florida Gulf Coast).
Brown in Top 5 in Scoring, Nearing 1,500/1,000
YSU's Brandi Brown has moved into the top five in school history for career points. The senior from Pomona, Calif., has 1,580 points in her career, one more than Margaret Somple and three more than Caroline McCombs. Ann Marie Martin ranks fourth with 1,630 points.
Brown is 24 rebounds away from becoming the third player in YSU history to record 1,500 career points and 1,000 career rebounds. Brown has 1,580 points and 976 rebounds in the first 98 games of her career, which equates to averages of 16.1 points and 10.0 rebounds. If she corrals her 1,000th rebound, not only would she join Wanda Grant and Dorothy Bowers as the only Penguins to reach 1,500 points and 1,000 rebounds, she'd be just the fourth player in Horizon League / MCC history to reach those milestones. Brown currently ranks fifth in school history in points and third in rebounds.
Hornberger Helper
Junior Liz Hornberger is enjoying the best stretch in her career so far this season. Hornberger is averaging 10.5 points and 2.4 assists while leading the Horizon League with 25 3-pointers. She has scored in double figures five times in the first eight games after scoring at least 10 points just three times in her first two seasons.
