Youngstown State begins December and its 25th season of Horizon League play with a three-game stretch against conference opponents, starting with its annual swing through Wisconsin. The trek to the Badger State opens at Milwaukee on Friday and continues in Green Bay on Sunday. Tipoff against the Panthers at the Klotsche Center is set for 7 p.m. Eastern, and the game will be broadcast on ESPN+, 570 WKBN and iHeartRadio.
Gameday Info
 
Game Preview
The Penguins are 5-2 this season and went 1-1 against Mid-American Conference teams last week in their final tune-up for league play. YSU fell 69-65 at home to Toledo, which was picked second in the MAC preseason poll, and recorded its largest margin of victory at Akron in 46 years in a 90-63 win on Sunday. The Penguins scored 20 of the first 23 points and led by double digits for the final 35 minutes. The 90 points were YSU's most in a road game since 2015, and the Penguins have already matched last season's win total in road contests.
Sophia Gregory is the reigning Horizon League Player of the Week after averaging 20 points and nine rebounds while shooting a noteworthy 81.8% from the field against the Rockets and Zips. It is the first Player of the Week honor of the sophomore's career, and she followed Casey Santoro's award the previous week. Gregory was a Preseason All-Horizon League First Team pick after being voted the conference's Freshman of the Year in 2024-25. Santoro, a sixth-year senior and one of two Division I transfers on the roster, needs five points to reach 1,000 for her career.
Santoro leads YSU in scoring from the point guard position, and all five starters are averaging between 12.9 and 7.0 points. Including top reserves Hayden Barrier and Paulina Hernandez, five of YSU's top seven scorers were either not on last year's roster or played in 10 games or fewer. Erica King, who has scored in double digits in four straight games, and Gregory are the lone exceptions.
Friday also marks the start of Horizon League play for Milwaukee, which is 2-7 so far this season. The Panthers were picked to finish ninth in the conference's preseason poll.
A Win Would...
- Give the Penguins a 6-2 record to start the season, which would be their best record through eight games since the 2021-22 team started 8-0.
- Give YSU a 10-3 record in Horizon League openers dating back to 2013-14.
- Improve YSU's record on the road to 4-1. YSU had three road victories in 2024-25.
- Snap a two-game slide at the Klotsche Center.
- Give Head Coach Melissa Jackson her 90th career win, her 18th at Youngstown State, and her second career victory over Milwaukee.
Milestone Watch
- Faith Burch is approaching 400 career rebounds, needing eight.
- Sophia Gregory is three steals away from 50 in her career. She's also approaching 300 career rebounds, needing 20.
- Paulina Hernandez is five blocks from 50 for her career, and she needs eight rebounds to reach 100 in her career.
- Erica King is eight points shy of 250 for her career.
- Casey Santoro enters Friday's game with 995 career points, needing five to reach 1,000. She's also two 3-pointers away from 150 in her career.
A Glimpse at the Guins
Team Notes
- YSU is in its second season under head coach Melissa Jackson. The Penguins started 4-0 last season and are 5-2 to start her second campaign.
- Youngstown State's roster features 12 student-athletes — nine returners and three newcomers. While 75% of the group is returners, only Faith Burch, Sophia Gregory and Erica King played in more than 10 games and averaged at least 14 minutes per game for YSU in 2024-25.
- YSU has used the same starting lineup of Gregory, King, Sarah Baker, Danielle Cameron and Casey Santoro in every game. Gregory is the only one in the group who started more than eight games last season.
- YSU was picked third and received one first-place vote in the HL preseason poll. The Penguins were 12-19 and finished in a tie for eighth last season.
- YSU has already matched its win total on the road from last season with three.
- The Penguins are shooting 45.5% from the field, which leads the Horizon League and is 7.7% better than last season.
- YSU is averaging 0.9 more 3-pointers per game and shooting 5.3% better from beyond the arc compared with last season.
Player Notes
Sarah Baker is averaging 11.0 points, and Danielle Cameron is averaging 7.0 points with 13 3s. Baker missed YSU's final 22 games of 2024-25, and Cameron missed the last 29... Hayden Barrier is averaging 5.1 more points per game and 12 more minutes than she did as a freshman... Sophia Gregory was the Horizon League Freshman of the Year in 2024-25 and was named to the Preseason All-Horizon League First Team. She was the Horizon League Player of the Week on Dec. 1 and is coming off her best two scoring performances of the season... Paulina Hernandez leads the Horizon League and ranks 20th in the nation with 2.1 blocks per game... Erica King has scored in double figures in four straight games, averaging 14.5 points in that stretch... Bella Samz is the longest-tenured Penguin in her third season with the program... Casey Santoro is five points away from 1,000 for her career. She is the team's leader in points, assists, 3-point shooting, and minutes.
Scouting Milwaukee
- Milwaukee is 2-7 as it begins Horizon League play on Friday. The Panthers are 0-3 on their home floor with a four-point loss to Loyola Chicago in the season opener and a one-point setback to Western Michigan on Nov. 13. Milwaukee's wins are over future Horizon League member Northern Illinois and former Horizon League team Valparaiso.
- Junior forward Jorey Buwalda leads the Panthers with 12.1 points, 9.2 rebounds and 1.0 blocks per game. She has 52 more points and 57 more rebounds than any other Panther through the first nine games. Madison Fitzgibbon and Rita Gomes both have nine 3-pointers, which is a team high.
- The Panthers were 8-24 overall and 5-15 last season. Milwaukee, under 14th-year head coach Kyle Rechlicz, was picked ninth in the Horizon League preseason poll.
Series History and Matchup Notes
Overall: Milwaukee leads 34-22
Home: 13-14 // Away: 8-20 // Neutral: 1-0 // Jackson (career): 1-1
Current Win Streak: 1 by Milwaukee
- Milwaukee holds a 34-22 advantage in the all-time series with YSU, but the Penguins have won 17 of the last 27 encounters dating back to the 2012-13 season. YSU has won nine of the last 12 meetings at Zidian Family Arena at Beeghly Center, and its last win at the Klotsche Center came in 2023. More recently, the teams have split the season series in each of the past three seasons.
- The Penguins had a string of tough setbacks from 2017-21 in Milwaukee, losing by four in 2017, by one at the buzzer in 2018, by three in overtime in 2019, by five in 2020 and by nine in the conference tournament in 2021. They won 60-56 in 2022 and 61-51 in 2023 in the building, and Milwaukee won 61-56 last year.
Last Time at Milwaukee
Youngstown State's Malia Magestro scored 24 points and made five 3-pointers, but the Penguins fell 61-56 at Milwaukee on Feb. 8, 2025. Magestro teamed with Jewel Watkins (13 points) and Sophia Gregory (10 second-half points) to account for 47 of YSU's 56 points. The Penguins led 25-16 midway through the second quarter before going scoreless for the final six minutes of the half, allowing Milwaukee to surge ahead 27-25. The teams traded runs and saw six lead changes in the fourth, with Magestro's fifth 3 giving YSU its last lead at 50-49. Milwaukee answered with key baskets inside and closed the game at the line, finishing 12-for-14 on free throws.
Recapping Akron
Game Summary
Youngstown State opened the game on a 20-3 run and cruised to a 90-63 victory at Akron on Sunday, its largest win over the Zips in 46 years. The Penguins led by double digits for the final 35 minutes. Sophomore Sophia Gregory paced five Penguins in double figures with 24 points on 10-for-13 shooting and added 10 rebounds. Sarah Baker scored 16 points, Akron native Erica King added 14 with game highs of five assists and four steals, and Casey Santoro and Hayden Barrier each reached double figures. YSU shot 55.9% and went 20-for-21 at the line while dominating the paint 50-26. A 34-point third quarter broke the game open, and the Penguins' margin never dipped below 14 in the second half.
Notes
- In Melissa Jackson's return to the gym where she spent 15 years coaching the Zips, Youngstown State had its largest margin of victory against Akron since winning 89-61 at Beeghly Center on Nov. 29, 2000. It was the Penguins' biggest victory in Akron since a 71-43 triumph on Feb. 13, 1979.
- The Penguins had their highest scoring game on the road since beating Oakland 96-77 on Nov. 28, 2015, and they had their highest total in a nonconference road tilt since scoring 91 at Purdue Fort Wayne on Nov. 13, 2011.
- YSU's 34 points in the third quarter tied for the second-highest total in program history. The last 34-point quarter came against WVU Tech on Dec. 6, 2022, and the record is 35 points against Sacramento State in Hawaii on Nov. 20, 2016.
- Youngstown State shot 55.9% from the field, which is the 15th-best percentage in program history and the best under Jackson. YSU also made its first 19 free-throw attempts before finishing 20-for-21 from the line for 95.2%. That is tied for the eighth-best percentage in the country this season with a minimum of 15 makes.
- YSU notched its third road win, already matching its total from 2024-25.
- The Penguins shot at least 45% from the field for the fifth time in their first seven games. That matches their total from 31 games last season.
- YSU had five players score in double figures for the first time under Jackson.
- Hayden Barrier scored a career-high 12 points on two 3s, a two-pointer and four free throws. She is averaging 6.4 points this season after totaling 13 last season.
- Paulina Hernandez tied her season high with four blocks, and YSU blocked six shots as a team.
- Erica King matched her career high with five assists and set a new career high with four steals.
- Casey Santoro tied her career high with 10 rebounds and posted her first double-double since she had a triple-double for Kent State against Clarion on Dec. 11, 2021.
Up Next
Youngstown State will continue its Wisconsin trip at Green Bay on Sunday. Tipoff against the Phoenix at the Kress Center is set for 12:30 p.m. ET, and the game will be broadcast live on ESPN+, 570 WKBN and iHeartRadio. The contest was originally scheduled for 11 a.m. Eastern but was pushed back due to a change with the Green Bay Packers' schedule.
