By Zach Flesch / The Jambar
The last time the Youngstown State University women’s basketball team scored 104 points in a game was Feb. 18, 1985 — until now. The streak ended Nov. 3 with a 104-33 victory over Thiel College at Zidian Family Area inside Beeghly Center.
The ’Guins kicked off their 2025-26 season in front of more than 2,000 local students during the 12th Annual School Day Kids Game, presented by Chick-fil-A at Tiffany Square Plaza.
The program’s 71-point win was the third-largest margin in school history and the biggest victory since Dec. 29, 1990. The game also tied for the eighth-highest point total in program history.
Senior Casey Santoro and junior Paulina Hernandez led the scoring efforts with 14 points each. Redshirt freshman Danille Cameron chipped in with 12 points.
With Cameron returning from a season-ending injury in the 2024-25 season, she said it felt good to be back on the court and in Beeghly Center.
“It definitely felt really good. I mean, it’s been a long road to recovery, but I had a lot of really good people around me to help me through it,” Cameron said. “It just kind of made the feeling of being back out there with the crowd. It made it feel so much better.”
Redshirt senior Faith Burch added a double-double with 11 points and a game-high 14 rebounds. Sophomores Erica King and Sophia Gregory, alongside freshman Brooke Adkins, all added 9 points. Redshirt freshman Ashlynn Van Tassell secured her first career collegiate bucket early in the fourth quarter.
All 12 Penguins found the scoring column, while 10 players recorded at least one steal. The team’s 23 steals were its most since Jan. 8, 1998, tying for the fifth-highest total in program history.
After the game, Head Coach Melissa Jackson said she was excited to see her team’s steadiness throughout the game.
“I’m really excited to see very much of a balance on the stat sheet and can score in many ways,” Jackson said.
Youngstown State shot 52.1% overall and 40% from 3-point range, making 10 of its 25 attempts. The Penguins recorded 23 assists on 38 field goals, and they outrebounded the Tomcats with a 57-21 advantage.
Following the win, the ’Guins hit the road for back-to-back games against the University of North Dakota on Nov. 7 and Michigan State University on Nov. 12.
