The Youngstown State baseball team (5-30, 3-9 HL) will continue a six-game road swing this weekend with a three-game Horizon League series at Oakland (10-21, 5-7 HL) beginning with a doubleheader on Friday at the Oakland Baseball Field in Rochester, Mich.

SCHEDULE UPDATE: Due to inclement weather in the weekend forecast, the Penguins and Golden Grizzlies are now scheduled to play a doubleheader on Friday beginning at noon before concluding the series with a single game on Sunday 1 p.m.

All three games of the series will be broadcast live on ESPN+ while live stats will be available through links posted on YSUsports.com. Fans can also follow @YSUBaseball on X for live updates.

Youngstown State at Oakland

Opponent	Date	Location	Video	Live Stats
	Friday April 17 | 12 PM ET	Oakland Baseball Field Rochester, Mich.	ESPN+	Live Stats
	Friday April 17 | 4 PM ET	Oakland Baseball Field Rochester, Mich.	ESPN+	Live Stats
	Sunday April 19 | 1 PM ET	Oakland Baseball Field Rochester, Mich.	ESPN+	Live Stats

A Glimpse at the Guins

• Senior left-hander Braden Gebhardt will start on the mound for the Penguins in the series opener on Friday while redshirt senior right-hander Brandon Mikos is slated to start game two of Friday's doubleheader. Senior right-hander Jack Messmore is scheduled to take the ball for YSU in the series finale on Sunday.
• The Penguins have dropped seven straight decisions after falling on the road to a pair of MAC opponents in non-league play earlier this week. YSU dropped an 11-1 decision in seven innings at Akron on Tuesday before falling 12-2 in eight innings at Central Michigan on Wednesday.
• In its most recent Horizon League games, Youngstown State was swept by league-leading Wright State in a three-game series last weekend at Bob Cene Park in Struthers, Ohio. The series opener with the Raiders on April 10 marked YSU's first game at Bob Cene Park since March 20, 2012.
• Youngstown State earned its first Horizon League series win of the season after taking two of three games at Milwaukee on April 3-4. The Penguins swept a doubleheader with wins of 5-3 and 7-4 on April 3 before dropping a 5-1 decision in the series finale on April 4. YSU earned a 6-5 triumph over Oakland in its Horizon League opener on March 13 at Pullman Park in Butler, Pa.
• YSU has lost four of the last five meetings with Oakland after dropping two of three games to the Golden Grizzlies earlier this season on March 13-15 at Pullman Park in Butler, Pa. The Penguins earned a 6-5 comeback victory in the Horizon League opener for both teams on March 13 before falling by final scores of 12-6 and 4-3 over the final two games of the series.
• Senior left-hander Braden Gebhardt was named to the College Baseball Foundation 2026 National Pitcher of the Year Watch List in March. The Howland, Ohio, native was named the Horizon League Pitcher of the Week three times in as many weeks to begin the 2026 season. Gebhardt earned his third consecutive weekly league honor after posting a career-high 12 strikeouts over seven scoreless innings on the mound in YSU's 2-1 series-opening win at Longwood on Feb. 27.
• Gebhardt allowed three runs on six hits with five strikeouts over six innings to earn his second victory of the season in YSU's 5-3 series-opening win at Milwaukee on April 3. He did not allow an earned run while scattering three hits and fanning seven batters over six innings to earn his first win of the season in YSU's 3-2 series-opening victory at Georgetown on March 20. The senior allowed his first earned run of the 2026 season during his 30th inning of work in his fifth start against Oakland on March 13.
• Through games completed on April 15, Gebhardt leads the Horizon League while ranking 33rd nationally with 66 strikeouts and 14th in the country with nine games started. He also paces the league in ERA (2.14), innings pitched (54.2) and WHIP (1.04) heading into the week. Gebhardt ranks 33rd nationally in ERA while ranking second in the league in hits allowed per nine innings (6.91) and walks allowed per nine innings (2.47).
• Gebhardt became just the ninth pitcher in YSU history to reach 200 career strikeouts in the series opener with Wright State on April 10. He currently ranks eighth in program history with 202 career strikeouts, and he ranks 14th in school history with 213.2 career innings pitched.
• Redshirt junior outfielder Brady Shannon leads the Horizon League with 10 home runs while also ranking eighth in the league with a .528 slugging percentage. The Youngstown, Ohio, native leads YSU with 10 homers, 20 runs scored, 21 RBIs and 56 total bases. Shannon went 4-for-5 with two home runs, a double and four RBIs in the series opener at NKU on March 27. He hit his eighth home run of the campaign at Pitt on April 8 before going yard twice during YSU's three-game Horizon League series with Wright State last weekend. Shannon currently ranks tied for 11th in YSU history with 20 career home runs. The redshirt junior has also become the first player in program history to hit at least 10 homers in two different seasons.
• Senior right-hander Jack Messmore ranks third in the Horizon League in innings pitched (44.2), fourth in ERA (5.24) and ninth in strikeouts (28). The first-year transfer from New Mexico scattered six hits and struck out five batters over 6.1 scoreless innings in game one of a doubleheader at Auburn on Feb. 14 in his YSU debut. Messmore recorded a season-high six strikeouts in his fifth start of the season against Oakland on March 14. The senior earned his first win of the season after allowing four runs and fanning three batters while matching his season high of 6.1 innings pitched in YSU's 7-4 win at Milwaukee on April 3. Messmore also hit a home run in his first plate appearance of the season while serving as the designated hitter in the series opener with Wright State on April 10.
• Redshirt junior utility player Nathan Beckley has now hit safely in 15 of his last 20 games after putting together a nine-game hitting streak from March 14-28. The Aliso Viejo, Calif., native is batting .281 and slugging .465 while leading the Penguins in doubles (8), triples (2) and walks (17). Beckley ranks second in the Horizon League with two triples while also ranking sixth with eight doubles and seventh with 17 walks. He has also reached base safely in 18 of his last 20 contests.
• Freshman infielder Alex Jang is batting .266 and slugging .403 while leading YSU with 33 hits heading into the weekend. The Las Vegas, Nev., native has hit safely in 13 of his last 20 games while putting together a five-game hitting streak from March 21-27. Jang recorded a career-high three hits including his first-career home run and a double in the series finale at Longwood on March 1. He matched his career high with three hits at Eastern Michigan on March 24 before going 2-for-5 with a two-run home run at Pitt on March 25. Jang also went 3-for-5 with his first career triple in the series opener at Milwaukee on April 3.
• Youngstown State's pitching staff ranks second in the Horizon League with a 7.01 team ERA and 233 strikeouts ahead of the weekend. YSU pitchers had also allowed the second-fewest total runs and earned runs in the league heading into Friday's series opener at Oakland.
• YSU recorded eight stolen bases as a team in a 6-5 league-opening victory over Oakland at Pullman Park on March 13. The eight steals were the program's most since the Penguins tied the single-game school record with nine steals against Toledo on April 10, 2019. The series opener with the Golden Grizzlies marked just the fifth time in school history that YSU swiped at least eight bases in a game. The Penguins currently rank third in the Horizon League with 45 stolen bases as a team in 2026. Freshman infielder Misael Uriepero ranks sixth in the league with a team-high nine steals.
• The Penguins have been hit hard by injuries to key position players throughout the 2026 season. Fifth-year senior outfielder Kendal Spencer started each of YSU's first 17 games before suffering a season-ending injury vs. Oakland on March 15. Sophomore infielder Jay Wrona, who was named to the Horizon League All-Freshman Team in 2025, played in just six games before being shut down due to injury. Sophomore catcher Caleb Hadley played in 10 games before also being lost for the season due to injury. Redshirt junior infielder Luke Rossi has missed 13 games due to injury, senior outfielder Brayden Kuriger has missed the last six contests and redshirt freshman infielder Nick Miscavage has missed a total of 23 games.
• Youngstown State is under the direction of second-year head coach Trevor Charpie. In Charpie's first season guiding the program in 2025, the Penguins finished with a 15-42 overall record and an 11-19 mark in Horizon League play to finish fourth in the league standings. There are 38 players on YSU's roster in 2026, and 17 of them were with the program last year. The Penguins returned 15 letterwinners from last year's team and have 21 newcomers to the roster.

Series Preview

A Win on Friday Would…

• Give the Penguins their sixth victory of the 2026 season.
• Snap a seven-game losing skid.
• Improve YSU's Horizon League record to 4-9.
• Snap a two-game losing streak in the series with Oakland.
• Give Trevor Charpie his 21st career coaching victory.

Scouting Oakland

• Oakland will enter this weekend's series with a 10-21 overall record and a 5-7 mark in Horizon League play after earning an 11-9 non-league victory at Michigan State on Tuesday. The Golden Grizzlies dropped two of three home games to Milwaukee in their most recent Horizon League contests. Oakland has won five of its last seven games dating back to a 10-7 win in 10 innings over league-leading Wright State on March 29.
• Fifth-year senior infielder Kyle Revere is batting .320 and slugging .492 while leading Oakland with 41 hits, five home runs and 63 total bases. Junior catcher Ben Clark is batting .308 and slugging .452 with a team-high 10 doubles while sophomore Aidan Schuck leads the Golden Grizzlies with 23 RBIs. Oakland ranks fourth in the Horizon League with a .255 team batting average through games played on April 15.
• Senior left-hander Tanner Ware has logged a team-high 30 innings pitched over eight starts on the mound while freshman right-hander Ben Green leads Oakland with a 4.00 ERA and 20 strikeouts in 27 innings pitched over seven appearances and five starts. Junior left-hander Ryan Donley and senior right-hander Jaxson Easterlin have each made a team-leading 14 appearances out of the bullpen. The Golden Grizzlies rank last in the Horizon League with a 8.37 team ERA.
• The Golden Grizzlies feature 16 newcomers in 2026, including nine transfers and seven freshmen. The transfers include six from the junior college level, two from NAIA programs and one from NCAA Division III. Oakland was picked fifth in the 2026 Horizon League Baseball Preseason Poll after finishing at 19-41 overall and 10-20 in league play last season.

Series History

• Overall: Oakland leads 36-35
• Charpie: 5-6 // H: 24-18 // A: 9-13 // N: 2-5
• Current Win Streak: 2 by Oakland
• Last Meeting: March 15, 2026 (L, 3-4)
• First Meeting: May 8, 1999 (W, 12-5)
• Youngstown State has lost four of the last five meetings with Oakland after dropping two of three games to the Golden Grizzlies earlier this season on March 13-15 at Pullman Park in Butler, Pa. The Penguins earned a 6-5 comeback victory in the Horizon League opener for both teams on March 13 before falling by final scores of 12-6 and 4-3 over the final two games of the series.
• YSU dropped a pair of contests against Oakland in the 2025 Horizon League Baseball Championship at Wright State's Nischwitz Stadium in Dayton, Ohio. The fourth-seeded Penguins suffered a 13-2 loss to the fifth-seeded Golden Grizzlies in the opening round before being eliminated with a 22-18 loss in 10 innings in a tournament elimination game the following day.
• The Penguins have won eight of the last 15 encounters overall after winning four of six meetings during the 2025 regular season. The Penguins won two of three games in Rochester, Mich., in early April last season before taking two of three contests at home in mid-May.

Recapping Akron & CMU

at Akron – Tuesday, April 14 // L, 1-11 (7 innings)

• Akron built an 8-0 lead and went on to defeat Youngstown State 11-1 in seven innings on Tuesday afternoon at Skeeles Field in Akron, Ohio.
• The Zips took a commanding lead early with six runs in the bottom of the first inning before adding single runs in the third and the fourth. The Penguins plated their lone run in the top of the sixth before Akron struck for three runs in the bottom of the seventh to collect the non-league win in walk-off fashion.
• Brady Shannon doubled for the Penguins offensively while Nathan Beckley and Alex Jang each recorded a base hit.
• YSU starter Brevin Smith suffered the loss after allowing six runs on five hits in the first inning. Kale Wemer was responsible for one earned run while posting new career highs with four strikeouts and 4.2 innings pitched out of the bullpen. Braedon Davis surrendered three runs on three walks in his lone inning of work.

at Central Michigan – Wednesday, April 15 // L, 2-12 (8 innings)

• Youngstown State fell to Central Michigan in eight innings by a final score of 12-2 in a midweek non-league contest on Wednesday afternoon at Keilitz Field at Theunissen Stadium in Mount Pleasant, Mich.
• In the first meeting between the two programs since the 2005 season, the Chippewas scored four runs in the first inning and three more in the third to build a 7-0 lead. YSU pushed across a single run in the top of the sixth before CMU responded with a pair of tallies in the home half of the inning. The Penguins scored another single run in the top of the eighth before the Chippewas answered with three runs in the bottom of the eighth to pick up the walk-off win in eight innings.
• Jack Messmore doubled for the Penguins offensively while Ryan Schummer singled, walked twice and scored a run. Misael Uriepero added a single, an RBI and a stolen base.
• YSU starter Lane Rhodes allowed seven runs over three innings on the mound in a losing effort while Aidan Dorsch was responsible for two runs over a season-high 2.2 innings out of the bullpen. Bryce Palms tossed 1.1 scoreless innings of relief before Jake Ferretti surrendered three runs while recording two outs in the eighth.

Up Next

Youngstown State is scheduled to visit Toledo on Tuesday at 3 p.m. in a non-league contest before hosting the Rockets the following day at 717 Credit Union Field at Eastwood at 5 p.m.