Jonesboro, Ark. — The Youngstown State battled through splits and a rare off-day on spare-shooting but still managed to win three matches on Friday at the Mid-Winter Invitational. The three-day tournament is being held at Hijinx: The Funtivity Spot and is being hosted by Arkansas State.

The Penguins went 3-2 in their head-to-head matches, and one of those victories was over No. 10 Maryville. YSU totaled 4,921 in its five Baker matches, which was the seventh-highest pinfall in the field of 18 teams.

"We didn't have our best stuff today, but I'm proud of how we battled," said YSU head coach Doug Kuberski. "These days are going to happen over the course of the season to all great teams. It reminds me a lot of our Saturday in Orlando, and going through that day helped us learn and make the adjustments needed to win. I believe if we embrace our weekend from that perspective, we will make a solid run together."

The Penguins got behind by 88 pins after two games in their opening match against No. 23 McKendree, and they fell 1,010-923 to the Bearcats. YSU started to find a rhythm over the final three games of its second match as it beat Alabama A&M 991-833, and the Penguins carried that momentum into a 1,104-963 victory against No. 10 Maryville. YSU broke 200 four times, and it finished the match against the Saints with a 243 and a 251.

Youngstown State posted a solid 997 set against No. 6 Nebraska in the fourth match, but the Huskers fired a 1,113 to win. The Penguins then edged No. 16 Newman 906-895 in the final match to finish the day 3-2.

Jacksonville State leads the field with 5,410 pins, and Nebraska (5,333), Arkansas State (5,227) and Vanderbilt (5,148) round out the top four.

The Penguins will bowl in five traditional matches on Saturday as qualifying continues at the Mid-Winter Invitational. YSU's first match of the day will begin at 10:25 a.m. Eastern.