YSU Women’s Basketball Announces Non-Conference Schedule for 2026-27 Campaign
8/18/2026 10:40:00 AM | Women's Basketball
YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio – The Youngstown State women's basketball team will play four games at Zidian Family Arena at Beeghly Center and two road games against Power Conference opponents during its 2026-27 non-conference schedule. YSU third-year head coach Melissa Jackson announced the 10-game slate on Tuesday.
The season will begin on Monday, Nov. 2, with the Penguins hosting Hiram College on Rosselli Court. Youngstown State will also play home games against Buffalo on Nov. 7, Heidelberg on Nov. 17 and Akron on Nov. 24.
YSU will play Hiram for the first time since Jan. 19, 1978, and the Penguins will host the Terriers for the first time since 1976. Youngstown State will face off with Buffalo for the first time since hosting the Bulls on Nov. 13, 2013, in a series dating back to January of 1995. The Penguins will play Heidelberg for the first time in program history. YSU and Akron will face off for the second straight campaign after resuming the series last November.
The Penguins will also play six non-league games away from home, and the first will be the program's first contest at Toledo since the most-recent meeting in the 2013 Postseason WNIT. YSU will play the first of two Power Conference opponents on the schedule when it visits Colorado on Nov. 14. The game against the Buffaloes will mark YSU's first contest against a current member of the Big 12 since playing at West Virgina on Nov. 19, 2023. YSU's matchup with Colorado in Boulder will also be the program's first game against a team located in the Centennial State.
The Penguins are slated to play Kent State for the first time since hosting the Golden Flashes in the 2022 Postseason WNIT. YSU will make the short trip to Kent for the first time since Nov. 20, 2018. The Guins will face their second Power Conference opponent of the season at Southern California on Dec. 13. The Penguins, who will play the Trojans for the first time in program history, will take on an opponent from the Big Ten for the third consecutive campaign after playing at Michigan State in 2025-26 and at Ohio State in 2024-25.
Youngstown State's contest at USC will mark the program's second game against a team located in California in the last 15 years. Most recently, the Penguins faced Sacramento State in a neutral-site game in Hawaii on Nov. 20, 2016. YSU's last game in the Golden State was a visit to Loyola Marymount on Nov. 25, 2011.
Youngstown State's final two non-conference games of the regular season will be in Teaneck, N.J., at a holiday tournament hosted by Fairleigh Dickinson on Dec. 19-20. The Penguins will play the host FDU on Dec. 19 before facing La Salle or San Diego on Dec. 20.
YSU's Horizon League portion of the 2026-27 schedule will be announced at a later date.
Schedule Notes
Nov. 2 vs. Hiram
- YSU will play the Division III Terriers for the first time since the 1977-78 season and the fourth time in program history. Youngstown State and Hiram are located less than 40 miles apart.
Nov. 7 vs. Buffalo
- YSU will play Buffalo for the first time since hosting the Bulls on Nov. 13, 2013. The Penguins own a 13-12 record in 25 all-time meetings against their former Mid-Continent Conference rival.
Nov. 10 at Toledo
- Youngstown State will play at Toledo for the first time since a meeting in the Postseason WNIT on March 23, 2013. The Penguins hosted the Rockets in Youngstown last November to resume a series dating back to 1979.
Nov. 14 at Colorado
- YSU will play a game in the state of Colorado for the first time in program history while facing a current Big 12 member for the first time since the 2023-24 season.
Nov. 17 vs. Heidelberg
- The Penguins will play the Division III Student Princes for the first time in program history. Heidelburg University is located approximately 150 miles from Youngstown in Tiffin, Ohio.
Nov. 24 vs. Akron
- After taking a one-year break in a series dating back to 1976, YSU and Akron will play for the second straight season and the 63d time in program history. The Penguins will host the Zips for the first time since Dec. 6, 2023.
Nov. 29 at Kent State
- YSU will play Kent State for the first time since the 2022 Postseason WNIT, resuming a series which features 46 all-time meetings dating back to 1976. The Penguins will visit the Golden Flashes for the first time since the 2018-19 campaign.
Dec. 13 at Southern California
- Youngstown State will travel to the Golden State for the first time since a visit to Loyola Marymount on Nov. 25, 2011. YSU head coach Melissa Jackson will face off against one of her mentors in USC head coach Lindsay Gottleib, who served as an assistant coach at Richmond during Jackson's time as a student-athlete with the Spiders from 2000-04.
Dec. 19 at Fairleigh Dickinson (FDU Tournament)
- YSU will play Fairleigh Dickinson for the first time in 46 years and the second time in program history. The only previous meeting between the Penguins and Knights was a neutral-site contest in Pittsburgh on Dec. 7, 1980.
- Youngstown State will play a game in the state of New Jersey for the first time since the 1984-85 season. YSU's most recent contests in the Garden State were against Delaware and Saint Peters on Dec. 29-30, 1984, at a tournament hosted by the Peacocks in Jersey City, N.J.
Dec. 20 vs. La Salle / San Diego (FDU Tournament)
- Following its contest at FDU on Dec. 19, YSU will play either La Salle or San Diego the following day as part of the holiday tournament's championship-style format.
- The Penguins have never played the Toreros while a matchup with the Explorers would be the program's first since playing at La Salle on Dec. 27, 1986. YSU and La Salle also faced off in Philadelphia on Dec. 28, 1983, in the only other meeting between the programs.
For the latest news and updates leading up to the 2026-27 season, follow @YSUWomensHoops on X and Instagram.
