Paige Shy drilled two clutch free throws with 2.3 seconds remaining in the game to lift the Youngstown State women's basketball team to a 52-51 win over Northern Kentucky on Saturday at Beeghly Center.
With YSU trailing 51-50, Shy was fouled by NKU's Ivy Turner while the Penguins attempted to inbound the ball with 2.3 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter. It was the fifth team foul against the Norse in the final period, sending Shy to the charity stripe for an opportunity to give her team the lead back in the final seconds. The Huntington, W. Va., native stepped up and calmly sank both attempts to put the Penguins back in front 52-51. Kailee Davis' last-second half-court heave fell short to give YSU its fourth consecutive victory.
Youngstown State improves to 16-5 overall and 10-2 in Horizon League play to remain in tie for first place in the conference standings. Northern Kentucky falls to 13-8 overall and 7-5 in league action while having its four-game winning streak snapped. The Penguins won their third straight decision over the Norse and swept the two-game regular season series for the first time since 2017-18.
Lilly Ritz scored a game-high 12 points on 5-for-8 shooting from the field and she paced the Penguins with seven rebounds. Emily Saunders came off the bench to score 11 points and match her season high with six rebounds in 14 minutes of action. Dena Jarrells scored eight points and dished out a game-high six assists while Shay-Lee Kirby contributed six points off the bench.
Davis and Emmy Souder each scored 11 points to lead the Norse, and Kennedy Igo was also in double figures with 10 points. Preseason First-Team All-Horizon League pick Lindsey Duvall scored eight points and grabbed a game-high 11 rebounds, but the Penguins limited NKU's leading scorer to 3-for-14 shooting from the field.
Shy's late free throws produced the sixth lead change of the contest and the fourth in the final minute of action. YSU led 48-42 after a fast-break layup by Kirby with 4:48 left in the game. NKU would score the next seven points as Duvall's second-chance layup with 27 seconds remaining put the Norse in front 49-48. The Penguins answered immediately as Malia Magestro's driving layup put YSU ahead 50-49 with 21 seconds to go. NKU responded with a driving layup by Davis to regain a 51-50 advantage with 14.7 seconds on the clock and set up the final sequence.
After Shy knocked down a three for YSU during the opening possession, the Penguins missed seven straight shots before a Saunders layup at the 5:01 mark of the first period. After Shy's three put YSU up 3-0, NKU scored the next six points of the contest. Northern Kentucky held an 8-5 lead at the first media timeout with 4:45 left in the first quarter. The Penguins responded with an 11-0 run that was capped by a Kirby layup with 1:38 to go in the first, and YSU led 16-10 when the opening period concluded.
Youngstown State took its largest lead of eight points for the first time on a layup by Ritz with 9:12 remaining in the second quarter. The lead went to eight again at 20-12 when Saunders converted a layup with 7:24 to go in the period. The lead was 28-22 when Ritz scored a two-point basket with 40 seconds left before halftime, and Igo's put-back layup in the final seconds of the half for NKU cut YSU's edge to 28-24 at the intermission.
The Penguins pushed their lead to 35-28 after two free throws by Ritz with 7:16 remaining in the third quarter. Northern Kentucky came back with a 9-2 run to tie the game at 37-37 on a layup by Souder with 2:40 to go in the third quarter. A bucket from Saunders with 55 seconds left in the third give YSU a 39-37 lead heading into the fourth.
Youngstown State shot 35.6% from the field overall and it went 5-for-22 from 3-point range for 22.7%. The Penguins limited the Norse to 34.4% shooting overall and 15.4% from beyond the arc (2-for-13). Each team had 32 points in the paint and both squads went 5-for-6 from the free throw line. YSU got 20 points from its reserves after having just 14 bench points in its previous three games combined.
Youngstown State will begin February with a road contest at Purdue Fort Wayne on Thursday at 7 p.m.
