Women's Basketball Renews Rivalry With Visit to Valparaiso Thursday

    Youngstown State (9-9, 4-3 Horizon League) renews an old rivalry with its second of three-straight crucial road contests when it visits Valparaiso, Thursday, Jan. 31. Tipoff is slated for 8:05 p.m. at the Athletics and Recreation Center in Valparaiso, Ind.
    The Penguins are in search of their first league road win and their first road victory since a 58-57 win at Saint Francis (Pa.) on Dec. 1.
    The Crusaders (9-9, 4-3 Horizon League) have won six of seven games at home and are looking to climb above the .500 mark for the first time since Jan. 10.
    The Penguins and Crusaders are tied for fourth place with Wright State in the Horizon League standings with 4-3 league marks.

Last Time Out
Three players in double figures and a gutsy first-half performance was not enough as Youngstown State shot just 35.5 percent after halftime and dropped a disappointing 77-64 loss to Cleveland State last Saturday afternoon at the Wolstein Center. Junior Kelsey Gurganus led the Penguins with 14 points while junior Tiara Scott added 12 and senior Heather Karner contributed 10 points.

The Series
This will be the 22nd meeting between the Penguins and Crusaders but the first since in more than six years. The Penguins own a 12-9 advantage in the all-time series including winning three of the last four contests. Valpo earned a 77-55 victory over the Penguins during the 2001-02 season - YSU’s first in the Horizon League. YSU and Valpo also have postseason tournament history meeting twice in the Mid-Continent Conference Tournament Championship in 1998 and 2000. The Guins won both contests - 78-69 in 1998 and 73-57 in 2000.

Scouting The Crusaders
Valparaiso enters Thursday’s game with a 9-9 overall mark and a 4-3 record in the Horizon League and is tied for fourth place in league standings with the Guins and Wright State. The Crusaders, who own a 6-1 home record, are coming off a 71-50 win over Detroit last Saturday and a 51-50 loss to Wright State on Jan. 24. Valpo is also the only league school to knock off league-leader Green Bay, 90-88, in overtime on Jan. 19. Leading the Crusaders is junior Agnieszka Kulaga, who is averaging 15.3 points per game. Junior Amiee Litka is also averaging double figures with 14.6 points per game while Launa Hochstetler and Sarah Ott are averaging 9.3 and 9.0 points per game, respectively.

A Win Will
• Mark YSU’s 10th victory of the season.
• Give Head Coach Tisha Hill her 41st career victory.
• Mark YSU’s 13th win over Valparaiso and the first win over Valparaiso since Feb. 10, 2001 (74-59).
• Mark YSU’s first win at the ARC since Jan. 15, 2001 (73-64).
• Mark YSU’s first 10-win season since 2004-05.
• Mark the 464th win in program history.
• Mark YSU’s third road win this season.

Vaughn Shining Versus League
Since Horizon League play started, junior Velissa Vaughn has been outstanding. After scoring just 17 points in the first 11 games, Vaughn has scored 87 points for an average of 12.4 points per game, including a season-best 19 points against Detroit on Jan. 19. The 5-foot-8 guard is shooting 42.5 percent from the floor and 44.4 percent from behind the 3-point line.

Branson Inching Toward Fifth
Senior guard Lauren Branson continues her move up the YSU all-time assist chart. With seven assists against Cleveland State last Saturday, Branson ranks sixth with 420 career assists and needs 28 more to move into fifth place past Colleen Cook (447, 1994-98).

Second-Half Surge Slowed
In its 77-64 loss to Cleveland State, Youngstown State scored just 26 points in the second half. It marked the first time since Dec. 19 the Penguins posted less than 33 points after halftime. YSU scored 34 against UIC (Jan. 3), 35 against Loyola (Jan. 5), 42 against Milwaukee (Jan. 10), 56 against Green Bay (Jan. 12), 33 against Wright State (Jan. 17) and 45 against Detroit (Jan. 19).

Home Sweet Home
The Guins are doing an outstanding job protecting their home court this season. YSU is 6-1 in games played in Beeghly Center and averaging almost 64 points per game. Three players average double figures led by Heather Karner’s 12.9 points per game. Juniors Tiara Scott and Velissa Vaughn average 11.4 and 10.7 points per game, respectively.

Road Tested
The Penguins have been road tested this season with 11 of 18 games being played away from Beeghly Center. The Guins are 3-8 in those contests and are averaging 62.3 points per game. Senior Heather Karner averages 13.8 points per game in road games and junior Tiara Scott owns a scoring average of 12.8 points per game.

Need To Lead
The Penguins have lead at halftime in 12 of 18 games this season and own an 8-4 record in those games.

Karner From Downtown
In less than two seasons, senior Heather Karner is approaching the YSU top 10 list for most 3-pointers made. Karner has made 95 3-point baskets and needs just four more to move into a tie for 10th place on the all-time list. She needs five more to become just the 10th player in school history to boast at least 100 3-pointers made.

Schloemp Streak at 91
Senior Jessica Schloemp owns a games played streak of 91 straight. Schloemp has also played in 101 of 102 career games.

Scott’s Efficiency
Junior Tiara Scott is currently on pace to set the fifth-highest single-season field-goal percentage in school history. Scott’s .554 field-goal percentage ranks sixth on the single-season list.

Assist Me, Please
Senior Lauren Branson continues to prove her value as a point guard. This season, the 5-foot-6 guard has tallied 94 assists to just 42 turnovers in 33.5 minutes per game. She leads the Horizon League with 5.2 assists per game and is second with a 2.24 assist-to-turnover ratio. She also ranks 12th nationally in assists-to-turnover ratio.

Scott Among League Leaders
Junior Tiara Scott is taking the Horizon League by storm. In the first seven league games, Scott ranks second in second in field-goal percentage (.600), tied for third in scoring (16.4 ppg), fourth in rebounding (7.0 rpg) and fifth in free-throw perecentage (.861).
Seniors Tabbed Team Captains
Guards Lauren Branson, Heather Karner and Kira Mowen and senior forward Jessica Schloemp have been named team captains for the 2007-08 basketball season.

Karner Nabs Preseason Laurels
Senior Heather Karner was named to the Horizon League Preseason All-League Second-Team in a vote of the circuit’s head coaches, sports information directors and select media. Karner led the Penguins with 10.9 points per game and was named to the all-newcomer team last season.

Up Next
The Guins play the third of three straight road contests at Butler, Saturday, Feb. 2. Tipoff is set for 2 p.m. (EST) at Hinkle Fieldhouse.