Youngstown State University
Kent State
Softball Visits Kent State, Hosts Saint Francis (Pa.) in Midweek Doubleheaders
4/20/2026 1:50:00 PM | Softball
The First Pitch
The Youngstown State softball team (26-15, 9-3 HL) plays a pair of non-conference doubleheaders, including its final regular season home doubleheader, when it visits Kent State, April 21, and hosts Saint Francis (Pa.), April 22, at the Covelli Sports Complex. First pitch against the Golden Flashes is at 2 p.m. while Wednesday's twinbill has a 3 p.m. start.
Last Time Out
The Penguins won their fourth consecutive Horizon League series by defeating the Green Bay two out of three times, April 17-18. The Penguins won the opener, 9-7, before falling in game two, 11-3. Youngstown State won the rubber match, 5-2, on Senior Day.
Up Next
Youngstown State returns to league action with a three-game series against IU Indy, April 24-25, in Indianapolis, Ind.
About Kent State
Kent State enters the week with an overall record of 17-25 and owns a home mark of 8-6. Ashlyn Porter leads the Golden Flashes with a .355 batting average while Aralyn Nogay is batting .338. Caleigh Shaulis leads the team with 10 home runs. Riley Miller leads the staff with an 8-10 record and a 5.65 ERA.
About Saint Francis (Pa.)
The Red Flash enter the week with an overall record of 4-36-1 and are 2-8-1 in true road games this season. Sofia Zielinski leads the team with a .462 batting average, 10 home runs and 34 runs batted in. Aliya Garroway is batting. 343 and has scored 30 runs.
Penguins' Bats Alive
Overall, Youngstown State is batting .341 as a team and ranks second overall in the Horizon League. In league action, the Penguins are batting .355 as a team and rank behind Green Bay with a .375 team average against league opponents. Youngstown State has nine players hitting .312 or better. Junior Selah Moyer leads the Penguins with a .400 average while senior junior Lydia Wilkerson is second at .371 and seniors Kennedy Dean and Emma Gilkerson are boasting averages of .367 and .361, respectively.
Dean Sets Single-Season RBI Record
Senior Kennedy Dean became the first Youngstown State player to drive in at least 50 runs in a season and broke the single-season record of 49 after blasting a grand slam against Mercyhurst on April 14. Dean now has 54 RBIs on the year and ranks second in the Horizon League.
Moyer Climbing RBI Chart
Junior Selah Moyer is climbing the YSU single-season RBI chart as well. Moyer ranks fourth on the single-season list and ranks third in the league with 47 runs batted in. This marks the first time in program history that two players have driven in at least 47 runs in the same season.
Monster Moyer
She batted .583 with three home runs, a double and 10 runs batted in. She also slugged 1.417 for the week. Moyer posted three multi-hit games and three multi-RBI contests. She drove in five runs with a home run and a double against Mercyhurst in an 11-1 win. She went 5-for-8 with five RBIs and two home runs in the Green Bay series. She went 3-for-4 with two RBIs in the 9-7 win and hit a pair of home runs and drove in three runs in the 5-2 series-clinching victory.
Campbell Reaches career win 700
Head Coach Brian Campbell, the winningest coach in program history with 418 wins, picked up the 700th victory of his coaching career in the Penguins' 4-3 win over Le Moyne on March 7 and now has 715 wins. Campbell is a three-time Horizon League Coach of the Year winning the award in 2012, 2021, and 2024. He led the Penguins to a 20-4 Horizon League record and tied the program single-season wins record with 36 in 2024. In 2021, Campbell led the Penguins to the first regular-season conference championship in program history with a 36-15 overall record and a 28-8 mark in league play. He has led the Penguins to six 30-win seasons and is the only coach in school history to win at least 30 games in consecutive seasons - 2021, 2022 and 2016, 2017.
Home Sweet Home
Since the Penguins began playing their home games at the YSU Softball Field in 2014, they have found a lot of success in their home ballpark. Youngstown State is 145-78 in 223 games in its on-campus facility for a .650 winning percentage. YSU secured its 100th victory at the complex with a 5-2 victory over Green Bay on April 23, 2022. Youngstown State has a 95-48 mark (.664) in Horizon League regular-season games played at the YSU Softball Field. Since 2021, the Penguins are 55-22 in conference regular-season contests played on their turf.
Turn It Up Tai
Junior Tai Turner has been one of the Penguins top offensive threats this season. Turner is batting .352 with 46 runs scored, five home runs, and 32 runs batted in. Her 46 runs scored rank third on the YSU single-season list.
