Youngstown, Ohio — Jewel Watkins scored 19 points in the first half, and six Penguins scored at least nine points as Youngstown State's women's basketball team opened the 2024-25 season with a 95-39 victory over Lake Erie College on Friday evening at Zidian Family Arena at Beeghly Center.
Watkins was 7-for-12 from the field overall and 4-for-7 from 3-point range, and her 3-pointer at the first-half horn gave the Penguins a 50-23 lead. Youngstown State outscored the Division II Storm 45-16 in the second half.
Watkins is a senior transfer who was one of nine Penguins who made their debut on Friday night at the renovated Zidian Family Arena at Beeghly Center. Freshmen Sarah Baker and Danielle Cameron both scored 10 points off the bench, and classmate Sophia Gregory nearly had a double-double with nine points and eight rebounds in 12 minutes.
Among the returners, fifth-year senior Malia Magestro scored 12 points, and junior Abby Liber grabbed a career-high 12 rebounds.
In total, 12 different Penguins scored as YSU began its era under head coach Melissa Jackson with a 56-point win.
Kennadi Harris led Lake Erie with nine points.
Liber scored on a fast break pass from Xoe Rosalez a minute into the game to give the Penguins a 2-0 lead, and they held the upper hand for all but 15 seconds the rest of the night. After Lake Erie's Anna Ibos tied the score at 5-5 at the 6:53 mark, YSU outscored the Storm 21-5 the rest of the period. Bella Samz made a layup to give the Penguins their first double-digit lead at 18-8 at the 1:59 mark, and the margin grew to 26-10 when Haley Thierry scored off a steal from Faith Burch.
Watkins drilled 3-pointers on back-to-back possessions midway through the second quarter to push YSU's lead to 39-16, and her 3-pointer in the final seconds of the half gave YSU its largest margin up to that point at 50-23.
In the third quarter, Rosalez made a 3 at the 7:04 mark to give YSU its first 30-point advantage at 54-32, and Liber's 3-pointer with 1:08 on the clock gave the Penguins a 41-point, 74-33 edge. The lead reached 50 on Gregory's basket at the 5:32 mark of the fourth, and the final score was the biggest margin of the night.
Youngstown State shot 64.7% in the first period, and it made 46.3% for the evening. YSU was 11-for-27 from 3-point range, and it added a 10-for-14 effort at the free-throw line. The Penguins had a substantial 59-27 edge in rebounding, and their 13 steals helped lead to 28-4 advantage in points off turnovers.
The Penguins will host St. Bonaventure on Tuesday at 6:30 p.m. at Zidian Family Arena as they continue a homestand to begin the season. For tickets, call (330) 941-1YSU or go to YSUsports.com/tickets.
