Women's Basketball Hosts Detroit In Search of Best Horizon League Start

    Youngstown State (8-8, 3-2 Horizon League) goes for its fourth straight Horizon League home win when it hosts Detroit (3-12, 0-4 Horizon League), Saturday, Jan.19. Tipoff is set for 4:35 p.m. at the Beeghly Center and is part of a men’s and women’s basketball doubleheader.
    The Penguins are in search of their sixth home win of the season and the first 4-2 start in Horizon League play since joining the circuit in 2001-02. The last time the Guins began conference play with a 4-2 mark was during the 1999-2000 season as members of the Mid-Continent Conference.

Last Time Out
Four players scored in double figures for the fourth time in the last five games to lift the Youngstown State women’s basketball team to a 61-58 triumph over Wright State on Thursday evening at the Beeghly Center. Senior Heather Karner led the Penguins with 16 points and nine rebounds. Junior Velissa Vaughn posted 14 points while senior Jessica Schloemp added 13 points and junior Tiara Scott contributed 10 points.

The Series
This will be the 20th meeting between the Penguins and Titans with Detroit owning a slim 10-9 margin in the all-time series. Last year, the Guins swept the season series against the Titans with a 55-39 win at the Beeghly Center and a 58-52 win at Calihan Hall.

Scouting The Titans
Detroit enters Saturday's game with a 3-12 overall record and a 0-4 mark in the Horizon League. The Titans fell to Cleveland State, 63-41, on Thursday evening. Keashawn Bond led the Titans with 10 points and five rebounds against the Vikings. Leading Detroit is junior Sandi Brown with 9.5 points per game.

A Win Will
• Mark YSU’s ninth victory of the season.
• Give Head Coach Tisha Hill her 40th career victory.
• Mark YSU’s 10th win over Detroit.
• Mark YSU’s third straight win over Detroit.
• Mark the 463rd win in program history.
• Mark YSU’s sixth win at the Beeghly Center this season.
• Mark YSU’s first-ever 4-2 start in league play since the 2001-02 season.

Schloemp Hits Century Mark
Senior forward Jessica Schloemp will be playing in the 100th game of her career today. The Findlay, Ohio, native has appeared in 99 of 100 possible games, including the last 89 consecutive contests.

Vaughn Shining
Over the last five games junior Velissa Vaughn has been a spark for the Guins. Vaughn is averaging 11.8 points per game while shooting 47.8 percent from the floor and 42.1 percent from behind the arc.

Branson Tops 400
Senior guard Lauren Branson became the sixth player in school history to reach 400 career assists after dishing out eight against Green Bay on Jan. 12. Branson has 410 career assists and needs 38 more to move into fifth place past Colleen Cook (447, 1994-98).

Loss in 80’s Rare
The Guins’ suffered a rare loss when scoring at least 80 points after an 85-80 loss to Green Bay on Jan. 12. Since the start of the 1999-2000 season, the Guins own a 19-4 record when scoring at least 80 points. YSU’s previous loss when scoring at least 80 points was an 86-80 overtime loss to Buffalo on Dec. 18, 2002.

Second-Half Surge
Over the last five games, the Guins have been playing great basketball in the second half. The Guins are averaging 40 points in the second half during that span and are shooting 46.2 percent from the field and 73.2 percent from the free-throw line. YSU scored 34 against UIC (Jan. 3), 35 against Loyola (Jan. 5), 42 against Milwaukee (Jan. 10), 56 against Green Bay (Jan. 12) and 33 against Wright State (Jan. 17). Junior Tiara Scott is also averaging 14 points in the second half over the last four contests.

Scott is Hot
Over the last five games junior Tiara Scott has been almost unstoppable. Scott is averaging 17.5 points and 9.3 rebounds per game while shooting 60 percent from the field and 96.4 percent from the free throw line. Scott has also made 24 straight free throws since Dec. 21, 2007, which ranks as the sixth-longest streak in school history.

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 91 3-point baskets and needs just eight more to move into a tie for 10th place on the all-time list. She needs nine more to become just the 10th player in school history to boast at least 100 3-pointers made.

Charitable Contributions
The Guins are having one of their best seasons from the free-throw line in school history. YSU is shooting 75.4 percent from the line, which currently ranks as the fourth-highest team percentage in school history.

Schloemp Streak at 89
Senior Jessica Schloemp owns a games played streak of 89 straight. Schloemp has also played in 99 of 100 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 .566 field-goal percentage ranks fifth 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 84 assists to just 38 turnovers in 33.5 minutes per game. She is leads the Horizon League with 5.3 assists per game and is second with a 2.21 assist-to-turnover ratio. She also ranks 12th nationally in assists-to-turnover ratio. In the last six games, Branson has dished out 42 assists compared to just 16 turnovers.

Scott Among League Leaders
Junior Tiara Scott is taking the Horizon League by storm. In the first five league games, Scott leads the league in free-throw percentage (1.000), ranks second in field-goal percentage (.642), third in the league in scoring (17.5 ppg) and fifth in rebouning (7.5 rpg).

Gurganus Hits For Career High
Junior Kelsey Gurganus notched a career high scoring 16 points in YSU’s 85-80 loss to Green Bay Jan. 12. Gurganus scored all 16 of her points in the second half, including three 3-pointers.

Guins Perfect 10
For the first time this season, Youngstown State made 10 3-point baskets in an 85-80 loss to Green Bay on Jan. 12. It also marked the first time the Guins made 10 3-pointers in a game since they converted 10 against Buffalo on Nov. 21, 2006.

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 have a week off before embarking on three straight road games beginning with an in-state contest against league-rival Cleveland State on Saturday, Jan. 26. Tipoff is set for 5 p.m. at the Wolstein Center.