Youngstown State looks to continue its success on the road as it travels north to Green Bay for a game against the Horizon League preseason favorites. Tipoff at the Kress Center is set for 12:30 p.m. Eastern, and the game will be broadcast on ESPN+, 570 WKBN and iHeartRadio.
Gameday Info
 
Game Preview
The Penguins are 6-2 this season and 4-1 in road contests following their 68-56 win at Milwaukee on Friday night. YSU has already surpassed its number of road wins from last season, and it has won four of its last five contests since its loss at No. 24 Michigan State on Nov. 12.
On Friday, YSU built a double-digit lead after the first quarter for the second straight game, and that was enough in the 12-point victory over the Panthers. Transfer point guard Casey Santoro scored her 1,000th career point in the second half, and she finished as one of five Penguins scoring between eight and 14 points. Erica King matched her with 14 points, scoring in double figures for the fifth straight game. Sarah Baker and Sophia Gregory both scored 11 points, and Milwaukee-area native Paulina Hernandez scored eight points and blocked three shots to give the Penguins a boost off the bench after the Panthers shook off their 0-for-14 start from the field and made a comeback effort in the second half.
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 last week. The sophomore forward was a Preseason All-Horizon League First Team pick, and she is averaging 9.9 points and 8.0 rebounds while ranking second on the team in assists, steals and blocks. Santoro was the league's honoree the previous week, and she leads YSU in scoring, assists and 3-pointers. Baker is averaging 11 points following her medical redshirt season, and five of YSU's top seven scorers were either not on last year's roster or played in 10 games or fewer.
Green Bay received eight of a possible 11 first-place votes in the Horizon League Preseason Poll as the pick to defend its conference regular season and tournament titles. The Phoenix graduated seven seniors and 85.2% of its heir scoring from last year's team, and a talented group of six transfers and two freshmen has Green Bay 6-3 to start 2025-26.
A Win Would...
- Give the Penguins a 7-2 record to start the season, which would be their best record through nine games since the 2021-22 team started 8-1.
- Be YSU's first win over Green Bay since a 63-60 win at the Kress Center on Jan. 20, 2023, snapping a six-game skid against the Phoenix.
- Improve YSU's record on the road to 5-1. YSU had three road victories in 2024-25.
- Give Head Coach Melissa Jackson her 91st career win, her 19th at Youngstown State, and her first career victory over Green Bay.
Milestone Watch
- Faith Burch is approaching 400 career rebounds, needing seven.
- Sophia Gregory is three steals away from 50 in her career. She's also approaching 300 career rebounds, needing 15.
- Paulina Hernandez is two blocks shy of 50 for her career, and she needs six rebounds to reach 100 in her career.
- Erica King is eight points shy of 250 for her career.
- Casey Santoro is one 3-pointer away from 150 in her career, and she is four free throws shy of 250.
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 6-2 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 surpassed its win total on the road from last season with four. The Penguins didn't get their fifth Division I victory until Jan. 15 last season, and they are 5-2 against D-I opponents in 2025-26.
- The Penguins are shooting 46.1% from the field, which leads the Horizon League and is 8.3% better than last season.
Player Notes
Sarah Baker is averaging 11.0 points, and Danielle Cameron is averaging 6.5 points with 14 3s. Baker missed YSU's final 22 games of 2024-25, and Cameron missed the last 29... Hayden Barrier is averaging 4.6 more points per game and 11.3 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. She is 22-for-27 from the field in the last three games... Paulina Hernandez leads the Horizon League and ranks 15th in the nation with 2.25 blocks per game... Erica King has scored in double figures in five straight games, averaging 14.4 points in that stretch... Bella Samz is the longest-tenured Penguin in her third season with the program... Casey Santoro scored her 1,000th career point on Friday at Milwaukee. The transfer point guard and captain is the team's leader in points, assists, 3-point shooting and minutes.
Scouting Green Bay
- Green Bay is 6-3 overall and 1-0 in Horizon League play following its 70-60 win at Northern Kentucky to open its conference slate on Thursday. The Phoenix is ranked sixth in the CollegeInsider.com Women's Mid Major Top 25 Poll, and it was second last week before dropping neutral-site games to NC State and Richmond.
- The Phoenix graduated seven seniors from last season's team that won 29 games and captured the Horizon League's regular season and tournament championships. That group accounted for 85.2% of the team's scoring last season, but six transfers — including three from Horizon League schools — and two freshmen have helped Green Bay enjoy early success under second-year head coach Kayla Karius. Green Bay was picked to finish first in the Horizon League preseason poll, receiving eight out of a possible 11 first-place votes.
- Green Bay's top two scorers are returning posts, with Meghan Schultz averaging 13.8 points and 5.3 rebounds per game and Jenna Guyer averaging 12 points. Freshman Kristina Ouimette has a team-high 12 3-pointers, and conference transfers Maddy Skorupski (Oakland) and Kamy Peppler (Milwaukee) have started all nine games.
Series History and Matchup Notes
Overall: Green Bay leads 50-6
Home: 3-22 // Away: 3-26 // Neutral: 0-2 // Jackson (career): 0-2
Current Win Streak: 6 by Green Bay
- Green Bay has won 50 of the 56 all-time meetings with Youngstown State in a series dating back to Jan. 21, 1993, when both teams were members of the Mid-Continent Conference. All 56 contests have been in league play or a conference tournament.
- While Green Bay has a hold on the all-time series, YSU has closed the gap recently, particularly in the last 13 meetings. The Penguins are 3-10 in the last 13 encounters, and the losses include a two-point margin in the semifinals of the 2019 Horizon League Championship and two double-overtime setbacks. The teams split the regular-season series in 2021-22 and 2022-23, and Green Bay is 5-0 over the last two seasons with a win in the 2023-24 conference tournament.
Last Time at Green Bay
Youngstown State made multiple pushes in the second half but came up short in a 58-47 loss to Green Bay on Feb. 6 at the Kress Center. The Penguins trailed by 15 at halftime yet cut the deficit to five in the third quarter and were within 51-45 with 3:33 remaining before the Phoenix delivered the final surge. Jewel Watkins scored a game-high 14 points and hit two 3-pointers, while Malia Magestro added 12 points and knocked down her 200th career triple. Sophia Gregory posted 12 points and seven rebounds. YSU outshot Green Bay 39.5% to 37.3%, but the Phoenix committed just seven turnovers and turned an 11-turnover advantage into an 18-6 edge in points off giveaways.
Recapping Milwaukee
Game Summary
Youngstown State controlled the opening quarter and stayed in front throughout a 68-56 win over Milwaukee on Friday at the Klotsche Center in the Horizon League opener. The Penguins held the Panthers without a field goal for the first 11 minutes and led 14-4 after a quarter, never allowing the margin to slip below four the rest of the way. Casey Santoro scored her 1,000th career point late in the third quarter and finished with 14. Erica King matched her with 14 for her fifth straight double-figure outing, and posts Sarah Baker and Sophia Gregory added 11 apiece. Gregory also had five assists, and Paulina Hernandez came off the bench to make two 3-pointers and block three shots. YSU shot 51% overall and outscored Milwaukee 44-36 in the paint while improving to 6-2 and 4-1 on the road.
Notes
- YSU improved to 10-3 in Horizon League openers dating back to 2013-14 and topped the Panthers to start conference play for the second straight season.
- The Penguins improved to 4-1 in road games this season with the lone loss coming at No. 24 Michigan State. That's a substantial improvement from when YSU was a combined 3-11 in road and neutral-site contests in 2024-25.
- Milwaukee was 0-for-13 from the field in the first period and missed its first attempt in the second. After that, the Panthers were 21-for-42 the rest of the game. YSU finished the opening period on a 7-1 run to open up its 14-4 lead.
- YSU led by double digits after the first quarter for the second straight game. It has not trailed in either of the last two contests.
- YSU had a season low 10 turnovers, and it did not have a shot blocked for the first time this season.
- Sixth-year senior point guard Casey Santoro surpassed 1,000 career points on an old-fashioned three-point play in the final minute of the third quarter. Santoro scored 735 points over her first three seasons at Kent State (during the COVID-19 season in 2020-21, 2021-22 and 2022-23), and she scored 170 in two seasons at Florida Gulf Coast (including a medical redshirt in 2023-24 and 2024-25). She is averaging a career-high 13 points with 104 points in eight games at YSU.
- Sophia Gregory was 4-for-5 from the field with all of her attempts coming in the third quarter. She is 22-for-27 from the field (81.5%) over her last three games while scoring in double figures in each of those contests.
- Paulina Hernandez made two 3-pointers in the third quarter to help YSU match Milwaukee with 22 points in the period. Hernandez is 6-for-11 from 3-point range this season after being 0-for-1 in 55 career games at Cleveland State the last two years. She also blocked two shots in the quarter.
- Erica King scored in double figures for the fifth straight game and surpassed 250 career points.
Up Next
Youngstown State will have an eight-day gap before its next game as it takes time to focus on final exams. The Penguins will be back in action on Tuesday, Dec. 16, against Wright State in the first Horizon League game inside Zidian Family Arena at Beeghly Center this season.
Promotions for Dec. 16 vs. Wright State
- YSU student T-shirt giveaway, and first the 100 YSU students will receive free Chick-fil-A Sandwich
- $2 Penguin City Light Beers for all fans until halftime
- YSU Window Cling giveaway, courtesy of SweatHouz, Bull and Bear, State Farm, and 21 WFMJ
- Akron Children's Hospital of Mahoning Valley Teddy Bear Toss at Halftime - Bring a teddy bear and receive a voucher for a free ticket for any future home game. Teddy Bears will be delivered to Akron Children's Hospital.
