Youngstown State's volleyball team will play its first road matches of the season this weekend at the Altoona Grand Red Flash Classic, hosted by Saint Francis (Pa.). The Penguins will play three matches at the tournament, which will be held at DeGol Arena in Loretto, Pa.

YSU will begin the week by playing Lafayette on Friday at 3 p.m., and the Penguins will play the Red Flash to start Saturday's action at 11 a.m. Youngstown State's final match of the tournament will be against Siena on Saturday at 5 p.m.

Live stats will be available throughout the tournament, and YSU's match against Saint Francis on Saturday morning will have live video streaming on the NEC Front Row platform.

A Glimpse at the Guins

• Senior outside hitter Abbie Householder could check off two significant career milestones this week at DeGol Arena. The Canfield, Ohio, native is 27 digs and 34 kills away from reaching 1,000 in each category. Only five other players in program history have recorded 1,000 of each, and she would join Lexi Egler (2011-14) as the only two Penguins to do so in rally scoring.
• Junior right-side hitter Gabriela Machin was named a Horizon League Player of the Week for the opening week of the 2025 season. Machin, a native of San Lorenzo, Puerto Rico, ranked second in the conference in points per set and attack percentage, and she tied for the league lead in aces per set while ranking third in kills per set. It was Machin's first career weekly honor.
• Youngstown State had four freshmen in its starting lineup in all three matches last week. Kameron Blizniak became the second true freshman setter to start a season opener since the start of rally scoring in 2001, joining Libby Darling in 2017. Brie Habeeb was the second true freshman libero to start match one since at least 2005 (Bailey Ramlow in 2019). True freshman Layne Graffice started each match at outside hitter, and redshirt freshman Niyah Lester started all three contests at middle blocker.
• The youth movement produced great results statistically, in addition to two victories. YSU posted a .279 attack percentage overall at its home tournament, it hit at least .210 in all three matches, and the Penguins hit .240 or better in eight of their nine sets. Defensively, Youngstown State averaged 2.0 blocks and 17.7 digs per set.
• YSU has one of the youngest rosters in the country in 2025. The group of 17 student-athletes includes seven true freshmen, two redshirt freshmen and three sophomores. Householder, Machin, Julia Sell and Maria Insana are the only players who have been with the program more than two years.
• Redshirt freshman setter Ava Prince was a member of Saint Francis' program in 2024 and transferred to Youngstown State in the offseason. Prince made her Penguins and collegiate debut in the match against Duquesne as YSU switched to a 6-2 offense midway through the second set.

Horizon League Individual Leaders (Top 10)

• Kameron Blizniak - T-1st in assists per set (11.44)
• Bianca Giglio - T-9th in blocks per set (0.89)
• Layne Graffice - 7th in kills per set (3.44); 8th in hitting percentage (.278)
• Brie Habeeb - T-7th in digs per set (4.22)
• Abbie Householder - 1st in points per set (5.33); 1st in kills per set (4.56); 7th in hitting percentage (.295); T-7th in digs per set (4.22); 9th in aces per set (0.33)
• Niyah Lester - T-9th in blocks per set (0.89)
• Gabriela Machin - T-1st in aces per set (0.56); 2nd in points per set (5.00); 2nd in hitting percentage (.443); 3rd in kills per set (4.11)

Upcoming Career Milestones

• Abbie Householder needs 27 digs to reach 1,000 for her career. She's also 34 kills shy of 1,000, and she is two aces away from 100.
• Gabriela Machin is five blocks from recording 100 in her career.

Quick Facts & Preseason Notes

Recapping Last Week

Results

YSU scores are listed first

1. Aug. 29 vs. Mercyhurst » W, 3-0 (25-12, 26-24, 25-18) | Box Score | Recap
2. Aug. 29 vs. Duquesne » L, 0-3 (34-36, 20-25, 23-25) | Box Score | Recap
3. Aug. 30 vs. Canisius » W, 3-0 (25-14, 25-18, 25-21) | Box Score | Recap

Notes

• The Penguins went 2-1 at the YSU Invitational, presented by Mercy Health, to begin the season. Youngstown State had 3-0 victories over Mercyhurst and Canisius to begin and end the tournament, and a closely contested 3-0 loss to Duquesne was in between. Two of the three sets against the Dukes were decided by two points, and the first set extended to 36-34.
• Gabriela Machin was named a Horizon League Player of the Week for her efforts. The junior right-side hitter averaged 4.11 kills while posting a .443 attack percentage, and her 0.56 aces per set tied for the league lead.
• Two of Machin's teammates also could've been in the conversation for conference player of the week. Abbie Householder led the conference with 5.33 points and 4.56 kills per set, and Kameron Blizniak tied for the league lead with 11.44 assists per set.
• Youngstown State opened a season at home for the fifth time in the last seven years and hosted a season-starting home tournament for the fifth time since 2019.
• While outhitting opponents .279 to .139 provided a clear edge, YSU was also strong defensively last week. The Penguins averaged 17.7 digs per set with Householder and libero Brie Habeeb contributing 4.22 apiece, and they posted 2.0 blocks per set.
• Youngstown State had the second-best attack percentage among all Horizon League teams last week at .279. Additionally, the Penguins had kills on 39.6% of their attacks, which was also the second-best rate. Only 11.8% of YSU's attempts resulted in an error, which was the best mark in the league.
• YSU had seven players make their collegiate debuts last week - Kameron Blizniak, Kennedy Dawson, Layne Graffice, Brie Habeeb, Niyah Lester, Ava Prince and Ava Stratton. Blizniak, Graffice, Habeeb and Lester started all three matches.

Scouting This Week's Opponents

Lafayette

• Record: 0-3
• Last Week: Lost 3-1 to No. 24 Duquesne; lost 3-0 to Washington State; lost 3-0 at No. 23 Utah
• Patriot League Preseason Poll: 8th of 9
• Statistical Leaders:
  • Kills - Ally Feczko and Abby Nicholson (1.70 per set)
  • Assists - Mackenzie Calhoun (3.80)
  • Aces - Calhoun (0.50)
  • Digs - Emily Gouldrup (3.30)
  • Blocks - Hannah Ehrich-Pollock (1.0) 

Saint Francis

• Record: 1-2
• Last Week: Lost 3-0 vs. Albany; won 3-1 vs. Robert Morris; lost 3-1 at Toledo
• NEC Preseason Poll: 3rd of 9
• Statistical Leaders:
  • Kills - Korrin Burns (5.91 per set)
  • Assists - Alexandra Sappia (9.73)
  • Aces - Sappia (0.45)
  • Digs - Gwen Atkins (2.78)
  • Blocks - Alyssa Irwin, Sappia (0.45)
• Notes:
  • SFU beat Horizon League member RMU 3-1 in its first tournament at Toledo last week
  • Korrin Burns is the reigning NEC Player of the Week after averaging 5.91 kills per set, the second-highest rate in the country last week.

Siena

• Record: 1-2
• Last Week: L 3-0 vs. Rhode Island; L 3-2 at Stony Brook; W, 3-0 vs. Central Connecticut State
• MAAC Preseason Poll: 10th of 12
• Statistical Leaders:
  • Kills - Doga Diraz (2.73 kills per set)
  • Assists - Alara Doganyuz (4.45)
  • Aces - Autumn Willmott (0.64)
  • Digs - Doganyuz (3.73)
  • Blocks - Diraz (0.91)

Next Week

Youngstown State will play its final multi-team event of the nonconference season next Friday through Sunday at the Steve Baumrind Invitational in Charleston, S.C. The Penguins will face the host College of Charleston at 6 p.m. on Sept. 12. They'll then take on Stetson at 3 p.m. on Sept. 13, and their weekend will conclude against Quinnipiac at 11 a.m. on Sept. 14.