Youngstown, Ohio — Youngstown State's women's basketball team had four starters reach double figures but came up four points short in a battle with Toledo on Tuesday evening inside Zidian Family Arena at Beeghly Center.
The Penguins dropped to 4-2 overall and lost their first contest on Rosselli Court this season. Toledo, which was picked second in the MAC Preseason Poll, improved to 2-3.
Sophia Gregory scored a season-high 16 points while adding eight rebounds, two assists, two steals and two blocks to lead the Penguins. Casey Santoro scored 15 points, Sarah Baker scored 14, and Erica King added 11. Those four starters accounted for 56 of YSU's 65 points, and they were the only four Penguins to score in the second half.
The teams were playing in the regular season for the first time since 2008, and they delivered a very competitive women's basketball game heading into Thanksgiving break. The lead changed hands five times in the fourth quarter, and it was a two-point game with four minutes remaining.
The Penguins led 46-44 heading into the fourth, and the back-and-forth start to the final period began to tilt in Toledo's favor when Alexa Hocevar made the Rockets' third 3-pointer of the period with 3:45 on the clock. That gave Toledo a 61-56 lead, and Patricia Anumgba scored two of her game-high 18 points on the next possession to push the margin to seven.
Gregory scored on the next possession to bring the Penguins within five, but neither team scored until Kendall Carruthers' bucket with 35 seconds left extended the Rockets' lead to 65-58. YSU showed its grit and got within two at 67-65 when Gregory grabbed the rebound from a missed free throw and drove the length of the court to score with 3.3 seconds left. Toledo successfully inbounded the ball, and Anumgba made both free throws for the final tally.
Youngstown State shot 47.3%, matching Toledo's 26 field goals in six fewer attempts. However, the Rockets made three more 3-pointers and outscored the Penguins 10-9 at the free-throw line. Toledo was 7-for-22 from 3-point range as YSU played zone defensively.
Toledo also took advantage of 15 offensive rebounds, converting them into 15 second-chance points. The Rockets also held a 20-7 edge in points off turnovers despite being just plus-1 in turnover margin.
Toledo scored the game's first seven points, keeping the Penguins scoreless until Faith Burch's turnaround jumper at the 6:43 mark. King hit a 3-pointer on YSU's next possession, but the Rockets extended their lead to 17-8 on a Carruthers 3 with 2:28 remaining to cap a 10-3 run.
The biggest margin was 22-12 with 46 seconds left, but Danielle Cameron's layup ended the quarter and sparked a run to start the second. Gregory drove from the elbow on YSU's first possession, and her steal and pass to King for a 3-pointer at the 9:33 mark brought the Penguins within 22-19. Youngstown State then had a four-point possession when Toledo was charged with a technical foul for having six players on the court to take a 23-22 lead. Santoro made two free throws and King added a layup to finish an 11-0 run for the home team.
The scoring pace slowed, and YSU scored five points the rest of the half. Toledo reclaimed the lead with an Evalyse Cole bucket with 7:48 remaining, and the Penguins played from behind the rest of the half as Toledo held a 34-28 advantage at the intermission.
Youngstown State scored 14 of the first 16 points of the third quarter to take a 42-36 lead with 4:18 remaining. That was the Penguins' largest advantage of the game, but Toledo kept them to one field goal the rest of the period. The Rockets tied the score at 42 on a Hocevar 3-pointer following an offensive rebound with 1:51 on the clock, and YSU's lead was 46-44 heading into the fourth.
Anumgba made a 3-pointer after a jump ball to give Toledo a 47-46 lead less than a minute into the fourth quarter, and the teams traded one-point leads until Anumgba hit another 3 with 7:01 on the clock. King's three-point play with 6:07 remaining brought the Penguins to within one, but that's as close as they got.
Youngstown State's next game will be at Akron on Sunday at noon. The game from James A. Rhodes Arena will be broadcast live on ESPN+ and 570 WKBN.
