| Vacant women's coaching job attracts many applicants |
| Friday, March 26 2010 |
| Courtesy of: Chelsea Miller Jambar SPORTS REPORTER |
| A dismal season for Youngstown State University women's basketball team and the resignation of head coach Cindy Martin after only two seasons did not deter the application process in the search of a new head coach. Currently, 82 hopeful applicants have applied for the position, some from Big Ten schools. Associate director of athletics Elaine Jacobs said applications will still have to be reviewed before a candidate is picked. The process will be difficult in that many of the coaches are well qualified for the position, she said. On the list of 82 candidates contributed by Jacobs, a few names can be easily recognized. Bernard Scott, current assistant basketball coach at YSU who has been with the team for two years, is applying. Another hopeful is Gwen Burton, assistant coach at Chicago State University. Burton is in her sixth season with the basketball staff. Prior to working at CSU, she served as assistant coach for the Grand Rapids Blizzard, a now nonexistent National Women's Basketball League team. Burton also worked as assistant coach at Martin Luther King High School in Detroit, where she led the team to consecutive semifinal appearances. As a player at Allen County Community College, she held the record for career three-pointers with 120 and averaged 16 points per game. Now Burton hopes to try her hand at head coaching a Division I school and helping turn around a failing program. "The opportunity [at YSU] to bring the program back to where it used to be in the '80s … is a great opportunity for me, if I can. Back then, it was exciting to watch," she said. Burton said if hired she will use her skills as recruiter to get the team back on top. "I'm a recruiter," Burton said. "I recruit top athletes … I would bring in more community to be supportive of the team. If you have a great community, you have a successful team." Corey Laster, assistant coach at Bucknell University, also believes he can help turn things around for the Penguins. In his third season at Bucknell, Laster has the experience turning failing programs around. While working as head coach at Defiance College, he led an eight-win turnaround for his team to improve their record to 14-11 during his second season as coach. Laster also arrived at Taylor University with a season record of 4-20 which he led to 25-3 and a fifth place showing in the National Small College Athletic Association his next year with the team. Laster said despite a record of 3-57 the past two seasons at YSU, he sees potential in the program. "Even though it was a very rough season … there's a lot of potential," Laster said. "I enjoy the rebuilding aspect of the program." |
| Cindy Martin Resigns as YSU’s Head Women’s Basketball Coach |
| Monday, March 15 2010 |
| Courtesy of: ysu |
| Youngstown -- Cindy Martin has resigned from her position as the head women’s basketball coach at Youngstown State University, announced Ron Strollo, YSU’s Executive Director of Intercollegiate Athletics. A national search for Martin’s replacement will begin immediately. Martin was the head coach at YSU for two seasons, and the Penguins went a combined 3-57 in her tenure. The Penguins were 3-27 in 2008-09 and 0-30 in 2009-10. “I have decided to step down from my position because I feel in my heart it is what’s best for the program at this time,” Martin said. “I want to thank Youngstown State University and the athletic department for the wonderful opportunity. We signed back-to-back recruiting classes that are committed to their successes both on and off the court.” “I hope my ladies and staff have learned as much from me as I have learned from them over the last two years.” Martin inherited a roster that was heavy on relatively-inexperienced seniors and had one incoming signee when she took over the program in April 2008. After a 3-27 season in which she depended on many first-time contributors, Martin and her coaching staff signed a total of 10 student-athletes who would have been eligible to play in 2009-10. However, only three of those appeared in a game during the year as the Penguins had a maximum of eight players in uniform. Three incoming players had season-ending injuries, three players did not meet academic requirements and another left the university on the first day of the fall semester. Those that did play were effective as newcomers Brandi Brown and Bojana Dimitrov were the team’s top two scorers. Brown was runner-up for the Horizon League Newcomer-of-the-Year award and had one of the best freshman seasons in school history. “We were surprised at Coach Martin’s decision to resign at this time,” Strollo said. “She accepted a difficult challenge in rebuilding the winning tradition of YSU women’s basketball, and she and her staff worked tirelessly the past two years toward that end. We understand the end results of this past season put their efforts to the test, but a full examination of the extenuating circumstances that led to this year’s outcomes makes those familiar with the situation supportive of the progress she made.” “However, Coach Martin’s unselfish attitude has led her to decide that the perceptions are too difficult to overcome, and, in the best interest of the future of YSU women’s basketball, she needed to step down. She has brought two solid recruiting classes to our program, most notably All-Newcomer Team selection Brandi Brown, so the foundation is much stronger than before her arrival. The integrity she has displayed in resigning only magnifies the reasons she was the right choice when we chose her as our head coach. We wish her nothing but the best in her future coaching endeavors.” Off the court, the women’s basketball team was a model program. The Penguins were a fixture in the community as they completed at least 30 community service projects in the past two seasons. The team was also strong in the classroom as it had a combined 3.29 grade-point average in the fall 2009 semester. |
| Penguins Go Down Fighting in Elimination Loss at Wright State |
| Tuesday, March 9 2010 |
| Courtesy of: YSU |
| Fairborn, Ohio -- Wright State scored 18 straight points early in the second half and eliminated the Youngstown State women’s basketball team from the 2010 Speedway Horizon League Women's Basketball Championship with a 61-43 win on Monday at the Nutter Center. Wright State moves on to play the second-seeded Butler Bulldogs in a quarterfinal round game on Wednesday while Youngstown State ends the season with an 0-30 record. Wright State junior guard LaShawna Thomas scored a game-high 20 points and went over 1,000 career points in the contest. Kenya Middlebrooks led YSU with eight points, and Rachael Manuel and Bojana Dimitrov had seven apiece. Manuel added three blocks and four rebounds in her final game in a Youngstown State uniform. Both she and fellow senior Kaitlyn March had the best individual season of their respective careers. Brandi Brown scored five points and grabbed four rebounds to wrap up one of the most impressive freshman campaigns in school history. She finished the season with 342 points and 318 rebounds. The Penguins were down 29-21 at halftime, and Brown scored the first bucket of the second half to cut the margin to six. YSU, though, went without a point for nearly eight minutes as Wright State pulled away. The Raiders went ahead by double digits for the first time on Erica Richardson's bucket with 16:36 left, and a Tanni Scott bucket in the lane capped an 18-0 run that put the Raiders ahead 47-23 with 11:52 remaining. Youngstown State kept fighting, and a Maryum Jenkins triple cut the margin to 18 with 6:41 left as YSU put on a full-court trap. The Penguins forced 28 turnovers, but they were only able to turn those into 12 points. Thomas scored the first six points for Wright State in the first half as both teams were careless with the ball early. Through four-and-a-half minutes, the Raiders had six turnovers, and the Penguins had four. The first half went back-and-forth with three ties and eight lead changes in the first nine minutes before Wright State took a 29-21 lead at halftime. The Penguins got the line eight times in the first 8:30, and they were able to take a 13-12 lead on two Macey Nortey free throws with 12:38 remaining. The Penguins went scoreless for more than five minutes, and Thomas scored four straight points as Wright State went ahead 16-13 with 8:57 left. Nortey ended the drought with two more free throws, but Wright State answered with an 8-2 run to go ahead 24-17 with 3:22 left. YSU was able to stay in the game in the first half by forcing turnovers and going 10-for-15 from the free throw line. The Raiders had 14 turnovers in the opening period, 13 of which came in the first 15 minutes. Thomas scored 12 of her points in the first period, going 5-for-7 from the field and 2-for-2 from the free-throw line. Middlebrooks had eight points on two buckets and four free throws in the first period. |
| Brown Named to Horizon League All-Newcomer Team |
| Monday, March 8 2010 |
| Courtesy of: YSU |
| Indianapolis -- Youngstown State women's basketball freshman Brandi Brown has been named to the Horizon League All-Newcomer team in a vote of coaches, sports information directors and media representatives from the league. Brown, a phenom from Pomona, Calif., was the only player in the Horizon League to average a double-double during the regular season with 11.6 points and 10.8 rebounds. She led the league with her 14 double-doubles and 10.8 rebounds per game, and she led all true freshmen in scoring. Brown finished second in the vote for Newcomer of the Year to Yar Shayok, a redshirt freshman from Detroit who averaged 11.7 points and 9.7 rebounds. Brown had even better statistics against Horizon League opponents, averaging 12.3 points and 11.3 rebounds. Both of those were tops among all newcomers, and she had 11 of her double-doubles in 18 league contests. "Brandi has just been phenomenal this year, and she is the most-polished freshman I have ever coached" YSU head coach Cindy Martin said. "She rebounds, defends, scores, communicates and executes her screens. I am so happy that she chose to attend YSU, and I know that the record books will continue to be updated over the next three years." "This is also a team award," Martin added. "Our team has done a great job of helping her receive this award, and we are all happy and proud for Brandi." Meredith Baugher, Brown's position coach who helped her develop, also praised the freshman. "Brandi worked really hard this year, and she is very deserving of this honor," Baugher said. "She's consistently improved over the course of the season and has been an immediate impact for our program. This is the beginning of a bright future for her here at Youngstown State" The 5-foot-11 post has already surpassed the previous Youngstown State freshman rebounding record by 75. Brown is one of only three players in school history to grab 300 rebounds in a season, and she is likely to become the only player in YSU history to lead her team in scoring, rebounding and steals in the same season. Brown is the fifth Youngstown State player to be named to the Horizon League's All-Newcomer Team since the school joined the conference prior to the 2001-02 season. She joins Jen Perugini (2001-02), Lauren Branson (2004-05), Heather Karner (2006-07) and Tiara Scott (2007-08). Brown and the Penguins will play at Wright State in the first round of the 2010 Speedway Horizon League Women's Basketball Championship on Monday at 7 p.m. |
| Penguins Open Tournament Play at Wright State Tonight |
| Monday, March 8 2010 |
| Courtesy of: YSU |
| Fairborn, Ohio -- The Youngstown State women’s basketball team begins its second season on Monday when it takes on familiar postseason foe Wright State at the Nutter Center at 7 p.m. Coverage on 570 WKBN will begin at 6:40 p.m. The 10th-seeded Penguins and No. 7 Raiders will meet in the tournament for the fourth time in nine seasons. Wright State has won all three previous meetings. The winner of Monday’s game will play at No. 2 Butler on Wednesday. Scouting Wright State Wright State is the No. 7 seed in the tournament by virtue of owning the tiebreaker with Valparaiso (No. 8) and Milwaukee (No. 9). The Raiders lost their last two contests to Cleveland State and Detroit, and their last win came over YSU on Feb. 25. LaShawna Thomas ranks 15th in the league in scoring (11.5 ppg), and Kanisha Ward’s 2.5 steals per game earned her a spot on the all-defensive team. Brown Named to Horizon League’s All-Newcomer Team Freshman Brandi Brown has been named to the Horizon League All-Newcomer team in a vote of coaches, sports information directors and media representatives from the league, the conference announced on Sunday. Brown was the only player in the Horizon League to average a double-double during the regular season with 11.6 points and 10.8 rebounds. She led the league with her 14 double-doubles and 10.8 rebounds per game, and she led all true freshmen in scoring. Brown is the fifth Youngstown State player to be named to the Horizon League’s All-Newcomer Team since the school joined the conference prior to the 2001-02 season. She joins Jen Perugini (2001-02), Lauren Branson (2004-05), Heather Karner (2006-07) and Tiara Scott (2007-08). Wright State Has Been Tourney Nemesis The Penguins are 1-8 all-time in the Horizon League Tournament. Of their eight losses in postseason play since joining the league in 2001-02, three have been to Wright State. YSU picked up its first win in the tourney in 2008-09 when it defeated Detroit 65-54 in a first round game. YSU has also been eliminated twice by Butler and once each by Green Bay, Loyola and Milwaukee. Brown is First Freshman at 300 Points in 15 Years With 19 points against Detroit on Saturday, YSU freshman Brandi Brown became the first Penguin freshman to reach 300 points since 1994-95. Ann Marie Martin and Caroline McCombs both surpassed 300 points that season, and McCombs’ 346 points is the YSU freshman record. Brown currently has 338 points, which means she’ll need 10 points against Wright State to break McCombs’ record. Brown has already smashed the freshman rebounding record by 75. Brown Surpasses 300 Rebounds With 16 rebounds against Milwaukee on Saturday, Brandi Brown became the third player in school history to grab 300 rebounds in a season. Wanda Grant and Dorothy Bowers both grabbed at least 300 twice in their careers, but Bowers is the only YSU player to do it at the Division I level (326 in 1985-86, 325 in 1987-88). Bowers is the only women’s basketball player to have her number retired at YSU. Brown Can Play Defense, Too Brandi Brown showed off her defensive prowess on Saturday as well as she finished with seven steals against Milwaukee. Six of those came in the first half. Brown’s seven steals were the most in a game since Brianne Kenneally had seven versus Cleveland State in 2000. Brown has a team-high 49 steals, which is eight more than Macey Nortey’s second-place 41. Brown ranks seventh for steals by a freshman in school history, and she has the most by a freshman since Caroline McCombs had 58 in 1994-95. Trying to Avoid a Winless Season Youngstown State will have its final shot at a win for the 2009-10 season against Wright State on Monday. If the Penguins falter, they will become the ninth women’s team to go winless for a season in the past 10 years, according to STATS LLC. All Returners Set Highs in Scoring With Kaitlyn March’s 21-point game on Feb. 27, all five of Youngstown State’s returners have set a new career high in points for a season. Rachael Manuel (143) and Kenya Middlebrooks (135) have made the biggest jumps. Nortey Reaches 200 Career Assists Through 59 games in her young career, sophomore point guard Macey Nortey has 208 assists. She had 80 last year, and she’s posted 128 through 29 games in 2009-10. Her 80 assists last year ranked sixth on YSU’s freshman record list, and her 128 this year rank fifth on the sophomore list. Nortey’s 208 assists are the fourth-most by a Penguin in her first two seasons. Only Dianne Rappach (246), Margaret Peters (233) and Caroline McCombs (229) have had more. Brown Breaks Freshman Rebound Mark, Closing in on Scoring Record With 14 rebounds against UIC on Feb. 6, Brandi Brown broke YSU’s freshman rebounding record. She now has 314 rebounds, surpassing Jen Perugini’s mark 239 that was set in 2001-02. Brown also has a chance to break Caroline McCombs’ freshman scoring record of 346 points. Brown has 337 points, which means she’ll need 10 points against Wright State to pass McCombs. Brown, Dimitrov Among Top-Scoring Newcomers Brandi Brown and Bojana Dimitrov continue rank among the Horizon League’s top-scoring newcomers. Brown averages 11.6 points, which leads all true freshmen, and Dimitrov’s 10.2 points ranks third among newcomers. Up Next The winner of Monday’s first round game will play at second-seeded Butler on Wednesday in a quarterfinal game in the tournament. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. |
| Brown Gets 14th Double-Double as Guins Fall in Finale |
| Saturday, March 6 2010 |
| Courtesy of: YSU |
| Milwaukee -- Brandi Brown notched her 14th double-double and added seven steals in the regular-season finale as the Youngstown State woman's basketball team lost 73-39 at Milwaukee on Saturday. Brown finished with 12 points and 16 rebounds to go with her seven steals, which were the most since Brianne Kenneally had seven on Dec. 16, 2000, against Cleveland State. The freshman had a chance for a triple-double as she had six steals at halftime, but she had just one in the second half. Amanda Viehauser countered with 16 points and 11 rebounds for Milwaukee. The Panthers opened up the second half on an 11-2 run, and Youngstown State went without a field goal for nearly 11 minutes as UWM built a 52-28 lead. The Panthers outscored the Penguins 38-16 in the second half after the deficit was a manageable 35-23 at halftime. Kaitlyn March added 11 points for YSU, which shot 19.4 percent from the game (13-for-67). Milwaukee made 29-for-60 for 48.3 percent. The Guins were 4-for-26 from 3-point range. YSU had 15 steals as a team and forced Milwaukee into 22 turnovers. After Milwaukee hit on its first two shots to take a 5-0 lead, YSU scored the next five points to square things up at 5-5 with 17:06 remaining. Brown became the third player in school history to grab 300 rebounds in a season with her board with 18:15 remaining. A Dimitrov triple made the score 9-8 in favor of Milwaukee, but the Panthers went on a 10-1 run to go ahead 19-9 with 11:28 left. Of UWM's first 17 points, 12 were off offensive rebounds. YSU scored the next five points and held UWM without a field goal for almost six minutes, and the Penguins trailed just 20-16 on a Kenya Middlebrooks bucket with 6:39 left. UWM scored the next five points as part of a 12-4 run to take a 12-point lead with 1:20 left in the half, and March and Viehauser traded 3-pointers in the final 20 seconds. Viehauser scored the final 12 points of the first half for Milwaukee and finished with 16 points and nine rebounds in 11 minutes. Brown had six points, 10 rebounds and six steals in 15 minutes in the first period. Milwaukee shot 38.2 percent in the first half, but YSU was held to 21.6 percent. The Penguins were 3-for-18 from behind the arc in the period. The Penguins will play at Wright State in a first round game in the 2010 Speedway Horizon League Women’s Basketball Championship. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. Coverage on 570 WKBN will begin at 6:40 p.m. |