Youngstown State eyes its second straight 4-1 record to start a season as it makes the program's first trip to Mercyhurst on Thursday evening. Tipoff on Owen McCormick Court at the Mercyhurst Athletic Center is set for 6 p.m., and the game will be broadcast live on 570 WKBN, iHeartRadio and NEC Front Row.

Gameday Info

• When: Thursday, Nov. 20, 2025 | 6 p.m.
• Where: Owen McCormick Court at the Mercyhurst Athletic Center | Erie, Pa.
• Watch: NEC Front Row
• Listen: 570 WKBN | iHeart.com
• Stats: SIDEARM Stats
• Social: X | Instagram | Facebook

Game Preview

The Penguins head to Erie, Pa., carrying a 2-0 record at home and a 1-1 mark in road contests. YSU picked up a 104-33 win over Division III Thiel to start the season, and it rallied for a 65-58 road win at North Dakota on Nov. 7. Youngstown State's lone loss was 96-52 at No. 24 Michigan State, and YSU is coming off a 60-53 victory over Bucknell on Sunday.

The Penguins never trailed on Sunday and scored 24 more points than they did in last season's meeting at Bucknell. YSU's top four scorers were underclassmen as Erica King scored a season-high 14 points, Hayden Barrier set a new career high with 11, and Sarah Baker and Danielle Cameron each scored nine. Barrier and Cameron each made three 3-pointers, and YSU made eight or more from long-distance for the third time in the first four games.

Balanced scoring has been a trend so far this season as seven Penguins are averaging between 10.5 and 6.5 points per game. Five different players have at least tied for the team lead in scoring through four games. Sixth-year senior transfer Casey Santoro leads the way with 10.5 points, and she has an impressive 13:2 assist-to-turnover ratio. Baker, who redshirted after missing the final 22 games with an injury in 2024-25, is averaging 10.3 points. Barrier (8.3 ppg), Cameron (8.0 ppg) and Paulina Hernandez (7.5 ppg) rank third through fifth in scoring so far, meaning YSU's top five scorers all played 10 games or fewer for the Penguins in 2024-25.

Following Thursday's game at Mercyhurst, Youngstown State will have just two more opportunities to prepare for Horizon League play. YSU will host Toledo on Nov. 25 and play at Akron on Nov. 30, and the conference opener will be at Milwaukee on Dec. 5.

A Win Would...

• Give the Penguins a 4-1 record to start the season.
• Improve YSU's road record to 2-1.
• Up the Penguins' all-time record against Mercyhurst to 2-0.
• Make YSU 3-0 against teams from Pennsylvania.
• Give Head Coach Melissa Jackson her 88th career win, her 16th at Youngstown State, and her second overall victory over the Lakers.

Milestone Watch

• Faith Burch is approaching 400 career rebounds, needing 16.
• Erica King needs two points to reach 200 for her career.
• Casey Santoro is one assist away from 250 in her career. She is also approaching 1,000 career points with 947.

A Glimpse at the Guins

• YSU is in its second season under head coach Melissa Jackson in 2025-26. The Penguins started 4-0 last season and are aiming for a 4-1 start this season.
• Youngstown State's 2025-26 roster features 12 student-athletes, including nine returners and three newcomers. Bella Samz is the longest-tenured Penguin as she enters her third season with the program. YSU has two seniors — sixth-year guard Casey Santoro and fifth-year post Faith Burch — two juniors, four sophomores, three redshirt freshmen and one true freshman.
• YSU's top five scorers through four games were either not on the team or inactive by the 10th game of last season. Seven players are averaging between 10.5 and 6.5 points per game, and six of those seven have attempted between 28 and 35 field goals.
• Sophia Gregory returns after being named the Horizon League Freshman of the Year in 2024-25. She is the lone returner who averaged at least 22 minutes per game last season and was named to the Preseason All-Horizon League First Team. Gregory is the team's top rebounder at 9.5 per game.
• Among the nine returners, only Burch, Gregory and Erica King played at least 10 games and averaged at least 14 minutes per game for YSU in 2024-25.
• Santoro and Paulina Hernandez join the program as transfers, and Brooke Adkins is the lone true freshman. Santoro is the team's leader in points, assists and 3-point shooting through four games.
• Redshirt freshman Sarah Baker is averaging 10.3 points and was named the Horizon League Freshman of the Week to start the season. Danielle Cameron, who missed the final 29 games in 2024-25, is averaging 8.0 points.
• Sophomore Hayden Barrier already has more points, 3-pointers and steals through four games than she did in 10 games last season. She is averaging 23.1 minutes per game, up from 6.3 a year ago. She and King were YSU's top two scorers in the win over Bucknell.
• YSU was picked to finish third and received one of the 11 first-place votes in the Horizon League preseason poll.

Scouting Mercyhurst

• Mercyhurst is looking for its first victory of the season after road losses at Michigan State and Dayton and a home setback to Cornell. The Lakers allowed the Spartans to score 125 points in the season opener, and an 86-44 loss at Dayton followed. Mercyhurst led Cornell 47-44 with less than 2:20 left in the fourth quarter on Friday but fell 53-49.
• Mercyhurst is in its second season as a Division I program, and Erin Mills-Reid is in her first season as the Lakers' head coach. The Lakers have eight returning letterwinners from last year's squad that went 9-18. Senior guard Jenna Van Schaik was named to the Preseason All-NEC Team after averaging 13.6 points last season. Mercyhurst has five freshmen and Division I transfers Gabby Sweeney and Lena Walz on its 2025-26 roster. Mercyhurst was picked to finish sixth in the NEC Preseason Coaches Poll.
• Walz is the team's top scorer and rebounder through three games at 12.3 points and 3.3 rebounds per contest, and she is 7-for-15 from 3-point range. Van Schaik is averaging 8.7 points and has team-high three steals.

Series History and Matchup Notes

Overall: Youngstown State leads 1-0
Home: 1-0 // Away: 0-0 // Neutral: 0-0 // Jackson (career): 1-0
Current Win Streak: 1 by Youngstown State

Youngstown State won the first meeting between the two programs on Nov. 19, 2024, in Youngstown. Thursday's game will be the first in the series in Erie, Pa.

Last Season vs. Mercyhurst

Youngstown State completed a 4-0 homestand with a 64-56 win over Mercyhurst on Nov. 19, 2024, behind a career-high 25 points from Malia Magestro. The senior guard scored 18 points in the second half and went 5-for-11 from beyond the arc to lead three Penguins in double figures. Faith Burch matched her previous career high with 12 points, and Abby Liber added 10 points and nine rebounds. YSU led for more than 38 minutes, using a 9-0 start and an 8-0 fourth-quarter run to stay in control. The Penguins were plus-nine in turnover margin and turned that into a 17-6 edge in points off turnovers.

Recapping Bucknell

Game Summary

Youngstown State never trailed and used strong starts in both halves to beat Bucknell 60-53 on Sunday at Beeghly Center. Sophomore Erica King led YSU with 14 points, four rebounds, two assists and three steals, while Hayden Barrier added a career-high 11 points on three 3-pointers.

YSU opened the game with a 9-2 run and later used a 7-0 spurt to take a 25-20 halftime lead. The Penguins then scored 15 of the first 20 points in the third quarter to build a double-digit margin and held off a late Bucknell push. Cameron made two 3-pointers in the fourth quarter — one to stop an 11-0 run with 5:13 remaining and another that extended YSU's lead to 60-49 with 1:33 left.

Notes

• Youngstown State avenged a 51-36 loss at Bucknell on Nov. 23, 2024. The Penguins shot just 15% from the field in that game in Lewisburg, Pa., last season. YSU had its worst shooting game in the early part of this season, but it was still a substantial improvement over last season's performance at Sojka Pavilion.
• Rebounding was a point of emphasis coming into the game, and Youngstown State held a 42-39 edge on the glass. YSU grabbed 17 offensive rebounds and converted them into 13 second-chance points. Sophia Gregory had six offensive rebounds, while Faith Burch grabbed five.
• YSU was plus-one in turnover margin but outscored the Bison 16-9 off turnovers.
• YSU did not trail in a game for the first time this season.
• The Penguins found a way to win despite having their lowest field-goal percentage in a victory in the Melissa Jackson era.
• The Penguins went 8-for-28 from 3-point range, making at least eight 3s for the third time in the first four games. Hayden Barrier and Danielle Cameron both made three triples, while Paulina Hernandez and Casey Santoro each made one.
• Barrier's three 3s represented a career high, and it helped her reach double figures for the first time in her career with 11 points.
• Sophia Gregory grabbed a game-high 10 rebounds, reaching double digits for the third time in the first four games of the season. She added three assists, and the Penguins were plus-15 in the scoring column when she was on the floor.
• Hernandez improved to 4-for-7 from 3-point range this season. She was 0-for-1 from long distance in her first two seasons at Cleveland State, which included 55 games.
• Casey Santoro came into the game having gone 8-for 13 from 3-point range, but she was 1-for-9 against the Bison. She found other ways to positively affect the game, grabbing eight rebounds while dishing out four assists without a turnover.

Up Next

Youngstown State's next game will be against Toledo on Tuesday inside Zidian Family Arena at Beeghly Center. It will be the Rockets' first visit to Youngstown since 2007. It will be Medical Mutual/Faculty and Staff Appreciation Night, and fans will receive a clear YSU bag, courtesy of Varsity Club Youngstown, Medical Mutual, and 21 WFMJ. There will also be a toy drive to benefit Toys for Tots. Fans who bring a new toy or a kid's book will receive a voucher for a free ticket for any future home game.