Youngstown, Ohio — Danielle Cameron made four 3-pointers in the third quarter, and Youngstown State's women's basketball team pulled away in the second half to beat Maryland Eastern Shore 61-42 in the second round of the Postseason WNIT on Tuesday.

The Penguins advance to the Super 16 of the tournament and will host Marshall on Friday at 6:30 p.m. inside Zidian Family Arena at Beeghly Center. Tickets will go on sale at 10 a.m. on Wednesday, and all seats will be $15. Penguin Club Courtside Coaches Club members, courtside seat holders, and season ticket holders will have until 9 a.m. on Friday to purchase their seats. Any unclaimed tickets will be released to the general public at that time. 

Youngstown State's 25 wins are the second most in program history, and it extends its season to a school record 35 games with Tuesday's victory. The Penguins secured their first win in the WNIT since 2013 and their postseason victory since 2016. YSU is 25-9 this season, while UMES' best season in program history ends with a 20-15 record.

YSU went on a 16-5 run in the first half to take a 22-14 lead, and the Penguins held a 24-17 advantage at halftime. Cameron scored 12 of YSU's 23 points in the third quarter as the Penguins extended their lead to 47-29. The Hawks got no closer than 13 in the fourth, and the margin reached 20 with just under two minutes left.

Sophia Gregory led YSU with 13 points, Sarah Baker joined Cameron with 12, and Paulina Hernandez scored 11.

Brianna Barnes led Maryland Eastern Shore with 14 points, and she made one of the Hawks' two 3-pointers in the game. Youngstown State countered with eight 3-pointers, and it was 8-for-16 from long distance over the final three quarters. The Penguins shot 43.6% from the field overall, and they had 19 assists on 24 field goals.

Playing their first game since the Horizon League Championship game two weeks ago, the Penguins were held to six points in the first eight-and-a-half minutes as they shook off the rust and adjusted to the Hawks' pressure defense. UMES led 10-6 following two free throws by Dakieran Turner with 1:52 left in the first quarter, and Hernandez and Baker combined for the final six points to give Youngstown State a 12-10 lead.

The Penguins pushed the margin to eight at 18-10 at the 7:26 mark when Santoro and Erica King hit back-to-back 3-pointers, prompting a UMES timeout and bringing YSU's crowd of 1,775 to a roar. Youngstown State was ahead by at least four the rest of the contest, and Hernandez beat the halftime buzzer to give the Penguins a 24-17 lead.

After being held scoreless in the first half, Cameron's 3-pointer at the 8:15 mark of the third quarter gave Youngstown State its first double-digit lead at 29-17. The Hawks scored five straight points later in the quarter to stay within striking distance at 33-25, but Cameron led a 14-4 burst over the final 4:36 to extend the margin to 18. She assisted on a Gregory basket to get the margin back to double digits, and Gregory returned the favor with an assist on a Cameron 3-pointer with 3:51 on the clock. UMES got within nine with three minutes remaining, but a 3-pointer by King and two more by Cameron allowed Youngstown State to go up 47-29 with 1:02 left.

In the fourth, Hernandez and Santoro combined to score five straight points to answer a 6-0 start by the Hawks, and Santoro's triple at the 5:41 mark gave YSU a 52-34 lead. The largest advantage came on a Hernandez bucket from Baker, putting YSU up 59-39 with 1:55 remaining.

Youngstown State will play Marshall for the first time since the 2000-01 season on Friday. The Thundering Herd is 24-9 this season and is coming off a 66-53 victory over UMBC in the second round of the WNIT on Monday.