Women’s Basketball Holds Media Session as Official Practices Begin
9/22/2026 11:10:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Youngstown State head women's basketball coach Melissa Jackson and junior guard Danielle Cameron talked with area media members on Monday after the Penguins completed their first official practice of the 2026-27 preseason.
Speaking on Monday afternoon from the Beeghly Center film room above Zidian Family Arena, Jackson and Cameron outlined the team's strengths and shared excitement for the upcoming season. YSU's 2026-27 campaign, the third with Jackson as head coach, begins at home on Nov. 2 against Hiram.
Preseason Notes
Looking to Build on Memorable 2025-26 Season
The Penguins will be looking to continue the momentum created by last year's memorable 2025-26 season which featured 25 victories and an appearance in the Postseason WNIT. YSU concluded last season with a 25-10 record, posting the program's highest win total since the 1997-98 campaign.
Youngstown State reached the championship game of the Horizon League tournament for the first time since joining the conference in 2001-02, and it went on to reach the Super 16 round of the Postseason WNIT.
Last season, YSU tied a school record with 11 road wins, matching the 1990-91, 1996-97 and 1997-98 teams. The Penguins also set a new school record for Horizon League road victories with eight.
Roster Composition
Youngstown State has 12 student-athletes on its 2026-27 roster. YSU has one fifth-year senior, three fourth-year seniors, five juniors, one sophomore and two freshmen.
Letterwinners Returning/Lost — 7/3
Starters Returning/Lost — 3/2
Newcomers — 3 transfers; two true freshman
Returning Firepower
Sarah Baker averaged 11.5 points and reached double figures a team-high 23 times in 2025-26... A Horizon League All-Freshman Team selection, she ranked third in the HL in field-goal percentage and set YSU's freshman scoring record (404).
Danielle Cameron ranked second in the HL with 2.1 3-pointers per game and averaged 8.9 points last season... She made more 3s than any other freshman in program history (73).
Hayden Barrier averaged 12.8 minutes in 2025-26, up from 6.1 as a freshman in 2024-25.
Reigning HL Sixth Player of the Year Paulina Hernandez led the HL and ranked 26th in the nation with 63 blocks, the third-most in school history in 2025-26… She played in all 35 games off the bench, averaging 7.4 points while shooting 49.2% from the field and 37.7% from 3-point range.
Erica King recorded 9.9 points per game, 2.7 assists per contest, 51 3-pointers and 47 steals while starting all 35 games as a sophomore in 2025-26.
Dacia Lewandowski played in 31 games off the bench as a team captain in 2025-26.
Brooke Adkins played in 22 games off the bench as a freshman last season.
Players Coming In
Jada Leonard – Fifth-year transfer point guard… In her first three collegiate seasons, has averaged 11.5 points, 2.4 steals and 2.4 assists per game over 92 contests… First two active seasons were in 2022-23 and 2023-24 at Saint Peter's… Redshirted the 2024-25 season at Bryant… Played the 2025-26 campaign at Cleveland State… Has averaged at least 10.4 points and 2.0 steals in all three of her seasons… Arrived at Youngstown State with career totals of 1,062 points, 222 steals, 217 assists and 90 3-pointers… Named to the Horizon League All-Defensive Team as a redshirt junior at Cleveland State in 2025-26… Led the Horizon League and ranked 21st in the country with 2.9 steals per game.
Gemma Walker – Junior transfer guard… Played her first two collegiate seasons at Saint Francis (Pa.)… Averaged 7.6 points and led the Red Flash with 75 made free throws during her sophomore campaign in 2025-26… Played in 25 games, making 16 starts, and added 2.7 rebounds and 1.1 assists per game.
Mia Kalich – Senior transfer forward… Played the first three years of her career at Division II Seton Hill University in suburban Pittsburgh… In three years playing for the Griffins in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference, posted totals of 999 points, 888 rebounds, 295 steals, 268 assists and 57 blocks while shooting 61.9% from the field over 91 games played including 64 starts… Averaged a double-double and was named the PSAC West Defensive Player of the Year in each of her last two seasons… Also named an Honorable Mention All-American and a Division II Conference Commissioners Association All-Region Second Team selection as a junior in 2025-26… Averaged 14.0 points, 12.1 rebounds, 4.1 assists and 4.0 steals while shooting 63.9% from the field during her junior season.
Evelyn McKnight – Freshman guard… Named the Ohio Division III Player of the Year and First-Team All-Ohio as a senior at Copley High School in 2025-26… Owns the Copley High School scoring record… Voted a third-team All-Ohio selection at the Division III level and a first team all-district selection as a junior in 2024-2025 while averaging 15.4 points per game… Named the Suburban League Conference Player of the Year.
Kaitlyn Turinsky – Freshman forward… Named the Ohio Division IV Player of the Year and First-Team All-Ohio as a senior at Bellevue High School in 2025-26… Helped lead Bellevue High School to its first-ever state championship in 2025 as the Lady Red went 28-1 and won their final 16 games… Her defensive presence helped Bellevue hold five of its seven opponents in the 2025 state tournament to 40 points or fewer… Named the MVP of the state title game.
Key Departures
YSU will be without two of its top three scorers from last season. Sixth-year senior point guard Casey Santoro exhausted her eligibility while forward Sophia Gregory transferred to Liberty following the 2025-26 season.
Santoro, a sixth-year senior who transferred to Youngstown State for her final season, earned the program's Coach DiGregorio MVP honor after leading the Penguins in points, assists and minutes in 2025-26. The native of Bellevue, Ohio, set the school record for most minutes in a season, and she was named to the All-Horizon League Second-Team and the Horizon League All-Tournament Team.
Gregory, a Second-Team All-Horizon League selection and the conference's Defensive Player of the Year in 2025-26, averaged 10.5 points, a league-high 8.7 rebounds, 3.0 assists, 1.5 blocks and 1.7 steals during her sophomore season.
Continuing Strong Academic Tradition
For the fifth time in the last seven seasons, Youngstown State's women's basketball program achieved one of the top four grade-point averages in the nation.
The 2025-26 team registered a combined GPA of 3.820 to rank fourth on the Women's Basketball Coaches Association's Academic Top 25 Team Honor Roll. That followed the previous year's achievement of recording the country's third-highest GPA despite having seven freshmen on the roster.
Youngstown State has had one of the nation's top 25 GPAs in 15 of the last 16 years, and this marks the ninth time since 2010-11 that YSU has ranked among the top 10.
