Youngstown State begins the second tour of the Horizon League by hosting the first-place team in the conference's standings on Wednesday night at Zidian Family Arena at Beeghly Center. Tipoff against Purdue Fort Wayne is set for 6:30 p.m., and the contest will be broadcast live on 570 WKBN, iHeart and ESPN+.

Gameday Info

• When: Wednesday, Jan. 29, 2025 | 6:30 p.m.
• Where: Zidian Family Arena at Beeghly Center | Youngstown, Ohio
• Watch: ESPN+ | espn.com | International Stream
• Listen: 570 WKBN | iHeart.com
• Stats: SIDEARM Stats
• Social: X | Instagram | Facebook

Tickets, Promotions & Fan Information

Tickets | Gameday & Parking Information | Visitors Guide | Promotional Schedule | YSU Mobile App - iOS - Android

• Advance tickets for Wednesday's game are available online through YSUsports.com or by calling (330) 941-1978. The ticket office and gates at Zidian Family Arena at Beeghly Center will open at 5:30 p.m. on Wednesday.
• Promotions
  • YSU Student T-Shirt Giveaway
  • Free Chick-fil-A sandwich for the first 100 YSU students
  • Stadium Cup Giveaway, courtesy of Roof Rite, Complete Pest Solutions, Lyden Oil Company, and 21 WFMJ

A Glimpse at the Guins

• The Penguins earned an important win for the league standings on Sunday as they topped Oakland 73-56. The victory brought YSU into a four-way tie for sixth place in the Horizon League, and the Penguins are just two games out of fourth. As January winds down, seven teams have records between 6-5 and 3-8 in the standings.
• YSU had its best offensive performance in league play against the Golden Grizzlies, and Jewel Watkins highlighted the day by scoring the 1,000th point of her collegiate career. Watkins scored 699 points in her first three seasons at other schools, and she had 304 points and counting at Youngstown State. One of 10 newcomers on this year's squad, Watkins led all players with 22 points on Sunday.
• Malia Magestro, one of four returners and in her fifth season at YSU, scored 19 points and had game highs of five 3-pointers and five assists. Magestro went over 1,000 career points in November, and she needs four 3s to become the fifth Penguin to make 200 in a career. Her next start will be the 100th of her career.
• In the league rankings, Watkins is seventh in scoring and fourth 3s per game, while Magestro is 13th in scoring and ninth in 3s.
• Sophia Gregory ranks fourth in the conference in rebounding, and she ranks second among the league's freshmen in scoring at 8.1 points per game. One of seven freshmen on YSU's roster, Gregory had her fourth double-digit rebounding game against Oakland.
• Youngstown State leads the Horizon League in 3-point field-goal percentage defense (.300), and it ranks second in blocks per game (3.5) and rebounding margin (plus-3.0). The Penguins are also third in scoring defense and fourth in turnovers forced.
• With three season-ending injuries and other players dealing with bumps and bruises, YSU has used seven different starting lineup combinations this season. Ten of the 14 players on the roster have started at least once this season.
• YSU is 44-29 in Horizon League play since the start of the 2021-22 season, and it has won at least 13 conference games in three of the past seven campaigns.
• Melissa Jackson is in her first season as YSU's head coach. The ninth coach in program history, she has spent the last 16 years in Northeast Ohio, and she has the highest winning percentage of any head coach in Akron history from her five seasons leading the Zips.
• Youngstown State has enjoyed tremendous success at Zidian Family Arena at Beeghly Center. The Penguins have had a winning record at home in 11 of the last 12 seasons, and they are 75-30 on Rosselli Court since the start of the 2018-19 campaign. YSU is 8-3 on its home floor in 2024-25.

Youngstown State vs. Purdue Fort Wayne

A Win Would...

• Give YSU a 10-12 overall record, a 5-7 mark in Horizon League contests and a 9-3 record on Rosselli Court.
• Improve YSU's all-time record against Purdue Fort Wayne to 11-5.
• Be the Penguins' seventh straight over the Mastodons in Youngstown.
• Give Head Coach Melissa Jackson her 82nd career win, her 10th at Youngstown State and her second over Purdue Fort Wayne.

Milestone Watch

• Faith Burch is three assists from 50 in her career.
• Malia Magestro needs four 3-pointers to become the fifth Penguin to reach 200. Her next start will be the 100th of her career.
• Haley Thierry is 10 points shy of 300 in her career.
• Jewel Watkins is nine free throws from making her 200th.

Scouting the Mastodons

• Purdue Fort Wayne is having a special season and will enter Wednesday's contest on a 13-game winning streak. The Mastodons are ranked 17th in the Mid-Major Top 25, and they have the fifth-longest active winning streak in the country. Their five losses include at Purdue, at Kentucky, and a one-point decision and two overtime contests at the Georgia State Thanksgiving Classic.
• The Mastodons lead the Horizon League in several categories, including scoring offense, 3-point shooting, free-throw shooting, steals per game and turnover margin. Purdue Fort Wayne ranks among the top 20 in the country in 3s per game, 3-point field-goal percentage and turnover margin. Defensively, Purdue Fort Wayne allows 60.9 points per contest, which ranks fourth in the league.
• PFW has eight seniors on its roster, and impact transfers Lauren Ross and Sydney Freeman lead the Mastodons in scoring. Ross ranks among the top five in the country in 3s per game and 3-point field-goal percentage, and she is second in the league in scoring at 17.1 points per game. Freeman averages 11.2 points and leads the 'Dons with 49 steals and 60 assists, and long-time PFW starter Amellia Bromenschenkel averages 11.0 points and a team-best 5.8 rebounds.

Series History and Matchup Notes

Overall: Youngstown State leads 11-5
Home: 8-1 // Away: 3-4 // Neutral: 0-0 // Jackson: 1-1
Current Win Streak: 2 by Purdue Fort Wayne

• Youngstown State leads the all-time series with Purdue Fort Wayne 11-5, and the Penguins have won eight of the last 11 meetings. They have also won six straight against the Mastodons in Youngstown, and Purdue Fort Wayne has triumphed on its home court in each of the last three years. YSU has a 7-3 edge since the Mastodons joined the Horizon League in the 2020-21 season.
• The teams went nearly 10 years between meetings from 2011 to when the Mastodons joined the conference. YSU had its highest scoring output ever in a Horizon League game in a 102-60 victory over Purdue Fort Wayne when the series resumed on Feb. 5, 2021. Since then, YSU has scored in the sixties in nine straight meetings as the Mastodons have improved. Defensively, the Penguins have held Purdue Fort Wayne to 60 points or below in seven of the 10 meetings since the 'Dons joined the conference.

Last Time vs. Purdue Fort Wayne

• Purdue Fort Wayne used a 26-point third quarter to gain separation and beat Youngstown State 74-60 on Jan. 1 at the Gates Sports Center.
• The Mastodons scored on their first three possessions to build a 7-0 lead, but YSU held them to 23 points the rest of the opening half and trailed 30-22 at halftime. The margin was 36-28 with just over seven minutes left in the third quarter before Purdue Fort Wayne went on a 20-6 burst to close the period.
• The margin grew to 25 points in the fourth, and the Penguins got hot down the stretch and scored 21 points over the final six-and-a-half minutes to cut into the deficit.
• Jewel Watkins made three 3-pointers in the fourth quarter, and she led all players in scoring with 18 points. Erica King scored 14 points, and Sophia Gregory grabbed a career-high 15 rebounds.
• Purdue Fort Wayne had a significant 30-9 advantage in points off turnovers, and the 'Dons outscored the Penguins 44-26 in the paint.

Recapping Oakland

Game Summary

Jewel Watkins scored her 1,000th career point to highlight an impressive offensive performance by Youngstown State in a 73-56 victory over Oakland on Sunday at Zidian Family Arena at Beeghly Center.

Watkins scored a game-high 22 points, her 19th giving her 1,000 in her career, as the Penguins had their most points and 3-pointers in a Horizon League game this season. Watkins was 4-for-8 from 3-point range and 8-for-18 from the field overall.

Malia Magestro scored 19 points with game highs of five 3-pointers and five assists, and she had 14 of those points in the final 20 minutes behind four second-half triples. Haley Thierry added 10 points and seven rebounds off the bench, and Sophia Gregory scored six points to go along with a game-high 10 rebounds, two steals and two blocks.

Watkins, Magestro and Xoe Rosalez hit 3-pointers on consecutive positions for the Penguins early in the first quarter, and YSU led 15-14 lead at the end of the period. Faith Burch's putback in the final 10 seconds caused the seventh lead change of the period, and YSU held the advantage the rest of the way.

The margin was one again at 21-20 with 5:09 left in the second, but the Penguins scored the final 13 points of the half. Watkins scored seven points in a three-possession stretch during that run as YSU built a 34-20 halftime edge. The Penguins led by double digits for all but 52 seconds in the second half.

Magestro's second 3-pointer of the third quarter capped a 10-1 burst that put the Penguins up 49-32, and YSU made its last five attempts of the game from beyond the arc. The Penguins led 49-35 heading into the fourth quarter, and YSU's largest lead came on Magestro's stepback triple with 6:40 left. Watkins' 3-pointer with 2:48 on the clock started a 10-1 run for the Penguins to close out the game after Oakland got within 10 points.

Notes

• Youngstown State made its first three attempts and its final five tries from beyond the arc, and the Penguins finished 10-for-18 from long distance in the game. Their 55.6% success rate was their best of the season, and the 10 makes were its most against a league opponent this season.
• The Penguins have made at least six 3-pointers in seven straight games after doing it seven times total in the first 14 games.
• Youngstown State shot at least 45% from the field in three of the four quarters, and it outshot the Golden Grizzlies 61.5% to 16.7% in the second quarter as it outscored the visitors 19-6.
• The Penguins were plus-14 in rebounding margin, which was their best against a Division I opponent this season. Oakland's 22 rebounds were the fewest by an opposing team in 2024-25.
• The Penguins were whistled for just eight fouls in the game, and there were 23 fouls called in total. Those 23 fouls resulted in 28 free-throw attempts, and the teams combined to go 25-for-28 from the charity stripe.
• Faith Burch had a season high three assists while scoring nine points and grabbing six rebounds. She made three field goals for the fifth consecutive game.
• Sophia Gregory grabbed 10 rebounds for her fourth game this season with at least 10. Gregory scored six points while adding two steals, two blocks and an assist.
• Dacia Lewandowski played 3:47  after missing the previous three games with a lower-body injury.
• Magestro matched her season-high by making five 3s in just eight attempts, and she added five assists. Magestro also made five 3s in 11 tries against Mercyhurst on Nov. 19. Magestro has made multiple 3-pointers in four of her last five games.
• Xoe Rosalez scored seven points, which was her most in a home game, her second-highest total of the season, and her most since she scored eight points on Dec. 7 at NKU.
• Haley Thierry played a season-high 30 minutes while scoring 10 points and grabbing seven rebounds. It was her second straight contest with 10 points and seven rebounds, and she has scored in double figures in three of her last five contests.
• Jewel Watkins played all 40 minutes, the first time a player has played the whole game this season. Watkins scored her 1,000th career point on a free throw with 4:28 left in the fourth quarter as part of a 22-point day. It was her fifth straight game scoring in double figures, and she has eclipsed 20 points three times in that stretch.

Up Next

• Youngstown State will play five of its seven games in February on the road, starting with its annual Wisconsin swing nest week. The Penguins will play at Green Bay on Feb. 6, and they'll play at Milwaukee on Feb. 8.