<strong>2010</strong>-<strong>11</strong> YOUNGSTOWN STATE WOMEN’S BASKETBALL TRADITIONS | NCAA TOURNAMENT TEAMS 1995-96 First NCAA Tournament Berth The 1995-96 season put the Youngstown State women’s <strong>basketball</strong> program on the national map. The Penguins won their second straight Mid-Continent Conference regular-season title - and their fi rst outright title in school history - with four sophomores and one junior in the starting lineup. As the No. 1 seed, the Penguins breezed through the Mid-Continent Conference tournament by defeating Western Illinois, 69-59, Troy State, 87-67, and Buffalo, 53-43, to earn their fi rst trip to the NCAA Tournament. YSU was selected as No. 15 seed in “The Dance” and drew No. 2 Penn State. The Penguins hung tough against the Nittany Lions and trailed 42-40 at halftime and 50-49 with 15 minutes left in the game. YSU, however, succumbed to a 19-0 Penn State rally and found themselves down, 69-49. YSU’s cinderella season ended with a 94-71 loss to Penn State in the fi rst round of the NCAA Tournament. YSU fi nished the season with a 20-9 ledger overall and fi nished 14-4 in the Mid-Con. Junior Liz Hauger was named fi rst-team all-conference after leading the Penguins in scoring with 16.4 points per game. 1997-98 First NCAA Tournament Victory Fueled by its appearance in the 1996 NCAA Tournament, the 1997-98 YSU women’s <strong>basketball</strong> team was determined to not only make a return trip to “The Dance”, but also make some noise. The Penguins turned in a school-best 28-3 record, won 16 straight games, and fi nished with a 15-1 mark in the Mid-Continent Conference. Coming off its fourth straight regular-season conference title, YSU earned the No. 1 seed in the Mid-Con Tournament and ran the table with victories over Chicago State, 76-57, Southern Utah, 83-73, and Valparaiso, 78-69, to collect its second NCAA Tournament automatic berth Caroline McCombs fi ghts for a rebound in YSU’s 91-80 upset victory over Memphis in 1998. Youngstown State possessed one of the most successful women’s <strong>basketball</strong> programs in the country during the 1990s. From the 1990- 91 season through 1999-2000, the Penguins won 196 games and had six 20-win seasons. Five of those 20-win seasons came consecutively from 1995-96 to 1999-2000 during which the Penguins played in the NCAA Tournament three times. YSU also captured fi ve straight regular-season Mid-Continent Conference titles from 1994-95 through 1998-99. in three years. YSU earned the No. 12 seed and drew No. 5 Memphis in the fi rst round. The Penguins pulled off the upset of the tournament, downing the Tigers, 91-80, for the school’s fi rst NCAA Tournament victory. After a slow start in the second round against North Carolina State, the Penguins saw their magnifi cent season <strong>com</strong>e to a close with an 88-61 loss to the fourth-seeded Wolfpack. Four of YSU’s fi ve senior starters earned all-conference accolades as Mid-Con Player of the Year Shannon Beach and Ann Marie Martin were named to the fi rst team. Martin led the team with 16.3 points per game while Beach averaged 13.8 points and shot better than 40 percent from 3-point range. 1999-2000 Third NCAA Tournament in fi ve years The 1999-2000 team was perhaps the most resilient group of Penguins to reach the NCAA Tournament. YSU turned in an impressive 19-8 regular-season mark but saw its streak of fi ve consecutive regular-season conference championships snapped. Youngstown State, however, was not deterred from its goal of reaching the NCAA Tournament for the third time in fi ve seasons. The Penguins swept through the Mid-Continent Conference Tournament by defeating Southern Utah, 84-78 in overtime, Western Illinois, 67-56, and Valparaiso, 73-57, to punch their third “Dance Ticket” with the automatic berth to the NCAA’s. Just as in 1995-96, the Penguins were selected as the No. 15 seed and faced No. 2 Penn State. Although the Penguins set an NCAA East Regional record with 12 3-pointers in a game, the Nittany Lions defeated the Guins, 83-63. YSU earned its fi fth-straight 20-win season with an overall mark of 22-9. Brianne Kenneally was named the Mid- Con Player of the Year and tournament MVP, leading the Penguins with 18.7 points per contest. Three-point specialist Leslie Majewski earned second-team all-conference honors after sinking 70 treys. 42 YSUsports.<strong>com</strong> | facebook.<strong>com</strong>/ysusports A great University. City. Team!
Wanda Grant Enshrined 1988 Danielle Carson Enshrined 1996 Donna Wertz Enshrined 2003 Colleen Cook Enshrined 2008 <strong>2010</strong>-<strong>11</strong> YOUNGSTOWN STATE WOMEN’S BASKETBALL Joyce Ramsey Enshrined 1989 Dorothy Bowers Enshrined 1997 Donna Djorovic Enshrined 2004 Ann Marie Martin Enshrined 2008 TRADITIONS | YSU ATHLETICS HALL OF FAME MEMBERS Vicki Lawrence Enshrined 1990 Margaret Somple Enshrined 2000 Kristi Echelberry Enshrined 1989 Caroline McCombs Enshrined 2008 Holly Seimetz Enshrined 1993 Dianne Rappach Enshrined 2002 Liz Hauger Enshrined 2007 Leslie Majewski Enshrined <strong>2010</strong> Margaret Peters Enshrined 1994 Ed DiGregorio Enshrined 2003 Shannon Beach Enshrined 2008 A great University. City. Team! Twitter: @YSUsports, @YSUWomensHoops 43
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