Youngstown -- Youngstown State junior Heidi Schlegel has been voted First-Team All-Horizon League, senior Monica Touvelle has been tabbed the league's Sixth Player of the Year, and Jenna Hirsch has been named to the All-Freshman Team, the conference office announced on Monday.
Schlegel received the third-highest number of votes on the all-league ballot to earn first-team honors for the first time in her career. She is the third YSU women's basketball player to be named First-Team All-Horizon League, joining Brandi Brown (2012-13) and Jen Perugini (2004-05). Touvelle is the first Penguin to be named Sixth Player of the Year, and Hirsch is a member of the league's first All-Freshman Team. The voting panel was comprised of coaches, women's basketball sports information directors and select media.
Schlegel is among the league's most-improved players, upping her scoring average to 20 points from 9.8 last year to rank second in the conference in scoring. The redshirt junior from Wapakoneta, Ohio, also ranked fifth in the conference in rebounding, fourth in free-throw percentage and 11th in field-goal percentage. She scored 20 points in 17 games, the second-most in the league, and her nine double-doubles tied for the third most in the league. Schlegel has shattered YSU's previous season records for free throws made (183) and attempted (226), and she scored the 1,000th point of her career at Green Bay on Feb. 23.
Schlegel has also been solid off the court. In addition to being named the Horizon League Player of the Week on Feb. 25, she was named the conference's Scholar-Athlete of the Month for December and January. Schlegel was a preseason second-team all-conference pick.
"Heidi is such a hard worker, and she's a great leader and teammate," YSU head coach John Barnes said. "She had a great year, and I'm happy to see her rewarded for her hard work."
Touvelle is having a solid season to close out her career and has cemented herself as one of YSU's best ever 3-point shooters. The senior from Boardman, Ohio, ranks fifth in the Horizon League in 3-point percentage at .389, and she maintained a similar consistency in league play at .387, which ranks eighth. Touvelle has made 177 treys in her career, which ranks third in school history. She scored at least eight points in six of YSU's first 12 league games before her foot injury started to limit her minutes. She scored six points on two 3-pointers Saturday against Cleveland State on Senior Day.
"Monica's had to battle a foot injury all year and has shown a lot of heart," Barnes said. "I'm proud that the league recognized her as the sixth player of the year."
Hirsch was forced to play a ton of minutes when YSU's point guard coming into the year was forced to miss the season, and she became a clutch player as the season went on. The Marlette, Mich., native started 21 games, and she averaged 8.4 points, 3.6 assists and 3.7 rebounds after making her first start on Dec. 13. She ranked second among Horizon League freshmen in assists and minutes per game, and she is fourth among the league's freshmen in points and rebounds per contest. Her 90 assists are tied for the fifth-most by a YSU freshman, and her 35 3-pointers rank third.
"I'm very proud of Jenna for coming in as a true freshman and taking over the reigns of the offense as the point guard," Barnes said. "To lead us to a third place finish in the Horizon League is outstanding."
The Penguins finished the regular season 14-15 overall but improved greatly during the league season to finish tied-for-third with a 10-6 mark. They host Oakland in the quarterfinals of the Horizon League Tournament on Wednesday at 7:05 p.m.
