West Virginia started strongly in the first three quarters and went on to beat the Youngstown State women's basketball team 94-40 on Sunday afternoon at the WVU Coliseum.
Dena Jarrells, one of four West Virginia natives who start for the Penguins, led YSU with 12 points on two 3-pointers and two old-fashioned three-point plays. YSU's other Mountain State natives, Paige Shy (eight), Emily Saunders (six) and Shay-Lee Kirby (five) were the Penguins' other top scorers.
West Virginia had four players reach double figures, led by Jordan Harrison's 16 points. The Mountaineers shot 57.1% for the game, and they shot 76.9% in the first period and 66.7% in the third. WVU went 13-for-26 from beyond the arc.
Youngstown State had turnovers on its first three possessions of the game, and West Virginia scored seven quick points to take a 7-0 lead. The Mountaineers extended the run to nine before YSU scored six of the next eight points. Jarrells got the Penguins on the board with a three-point play at the 6:14 mark, and Shy hit a 3 with 5:45 on the clock to make the score 11-6.
The margin remained five at the first media timeout, and Shy missed a 3-pointer after the break that could have brought the score to within a possession. West Virginia made three 3s around a 3-pointer by YSU's Malia Magestro to push the margin to 20-9, and the Mountaineers closed the opening session by scoring the final 10 points after Magestro's triple.
WVU then scored the first nine points of the second quarter to increase the margin.
Jarrells' first of two 3-pointers in the back half of the second quarter came at the 4:48 mark, and Emily Saunders' first bucket came on her first shot attempt with 1:49 left. Jarrells hit her second 3 on YSU's final possession of the half to get her point total to nine in the first 20 minutes.
West Virginia led 47-19 at halftime, and the Mountaineers scored the first 18 points of the second half. The Penguins went with their reserves for the final 7:40 of the quarter, and Haley Thierry, Abby Liber and Mackenzie Hurd each made field goals.
WVU led 77-25 after 30 minutes, and Youngstown State's starting five came back in for the beginning of the fourth and shaved nine points off the deficit in the first four-plus minutes. The Mountaineers made three 3s in the final 3:30 to increase the final margin.
The Penguins will be back in action on Friday against Rhode Island in their first game at the Las Vegas Holiday Classic. Youngstown State will also play against Northern Arizona on Saturday at the tournament that will be held at The Orleans Hotel & Casino.
