The First Pitch
After playing its first three home games of the year last weekend, the Youngstown State softball team heads back on the road for four games, including its first three-game Horizon League-road series.

At-Bat
The Penguins visit in-state foe Ohio State in a single game, Wednesday, March 19. First pitch against the Buckeyes is at 4 p.m. Youngstown State also visits Detroit Mercy for a three-game league series, March 21-22. First pitch on Friday is set for 3 p.m. while Saturday's doubleheader has a 12 p.m. first pitch.

Up Next
Youngstown State returns home to hosts Niagara in a doubleheader, Tuesday, March 25, and visits Bowling Green for a twinbill, Wednesday, March 26. First pitch of the Niagara doubleheader is set for 3 p.m. while the Bowling Green twinbill has a 2 p.m. start.

About Ohio State
Ohio State enters the game with an overall record of 21-6-1 and owns a home record of 8-2. The Buckeyes are led by Jasmyn Burns with a .513 batting average, 10 home runs, 12 doubles, and 34 runs batted in. Sami Bewick is batting .415 and has five homers. Lorin Boutte leads the Buckeyes pitching staff with a 10-4 record and a 3.41 earned run average.

About Detroit Mercy
Detroit Mercy enters the week with an overall record of 3-13. The series against the Penguins will be the Titans' home and Horizon League openers. Jada Davis leads the Titans with at .277 batting average while Allison Fluker is batting .270.

Campbell Nearing Milestones
Head Coach Brian Campbell is in his 17th season at Youngstown State and his 25th as a college head coach. Campbell owns a career record of 679-549-2 and a 394-420-1 mark at Youngstown State. The all-time winningest coach in program history, Campbell needs 21 more wins to reach 700 for his career and six more to reach 400 at Youngstown State.

Wilkerson Staying Hot
Wilkerson continues to swing a hot bat at the plate for the Penguins. She leads the team with a .359 batting average, 11 runs scored and 14 runs batted in. She is tied with Kennedy Dean with two home runs. Wilkerson batted .500 last weekend going 5-of-10 against Cleveland State.

Littler Still Lit
Sophomore Macy Littler continued staying hot from year one to year two. Littler is second on the team with a .324 batting average and 10 runs scored this season. Littler also has the team's only triple. Littler posted a .455 batting average (5-for-11) last weekend.

Ogin Picks Up First Career Win, Shutout
Freshman pitcher Kelsey Ogin turned in an impressive performance in the Penguins win over Furman on March 8. Ogin fired a three-hit, complete-game shutout with six strikeouts against the Paladins.

Behlke Named Pitcher of the Week
Youngstown State sophomore Autumn Behlke has been named the Horizon League Pitcher of the Week, the conference announced on March 3. This is the first weekly award of Behlke's career. Behlke went 2-1 with a 3.06 ERA last week while striking out 11 batters. she fired a complete game four-hitter with seven strikeouts in a win over St. Bonaventure on Feb. 28. She also picked up the win against Southern Indiana on March 2.

Imler Looking to Continue High-Level Play
Fifth-year senior Elyssa Imler was named the 2024 Horizon League Player of the Year, All-Horizon League First-Team, and led the Penguins with a .340 batting average with 36 runs scored, 51 hits, 21 RBIs, 10 doubles and a home run. She stole 14 bases. Imler also hit .444 with 16 runs, 32 hits five doubles, a home run, and 15 RBIs against Horizon League foes.

Wilkerson Posted Solid Frosh Campaign
Sophomore Lydia Wilkerson was named All-Horizon League Second Team and All-Freshman Team last season. She batted .331 with 19 runs, nine doubles, two home runs and 17 runs batted. Wilkerson also slugged .422 with an on-base percentage of .389. She led the team with 55 hits and recorded 14 multi-hit games…Wilkerson batted. 377 against Horizon League opponents with four doubles and two homers.

What Returns
The Penguins return15 letterwinners and five starters from last year's squad that tied the school record for wins with an overall record of 36-17. The Penguins also won their second regular-season championship with a Horizon League record of 15-5 in 2024.

Penguins Welcome Several Newcomers
Along with 15 returning letterwinners, the Penguins welcome six new players to the 2025 squad. Joining the Penguins this season are Alivia Boothe, Autumn Boyd, Kami Diaz, Bella Meyer, Kelsey Ogin, and Ayla Ray.