YSU begins league action

YOUNGSTOWN -- Now the war begins.
Youngstown State men's and women's basketball teams will open Horizon League play this week.
The men play Tuesday at 2 p.m. at Loyola of Chicago while the women are at home at Beeghly Center to play the Ramblers on Thursday at 7 p.m.
The men have a three-game losing streak after Saturday's 66-58 loss to Niagara. It was their first home loss this season and dropped their season mark to 4-5.
The Penguins are struggling on offense, especially against the zone defense that every team is throwing against them.
YSU lacks a consistent outside shooting game. They are not good shooters and against the sagging zone defenses they aren't able to get the ball inside to their big men.
Saturday, the Penguins had 12 field goals in the first half, nine of them were either layups or within five feet of the basket.
They made 10 baskets in the second half, seven of them were layups. Sixteen of the team's 22 baskets were scored inside, only six from outside the foul line.
Road woes continue
Things are not going to get any easier now that Horizon League play begins. YSU won just two league games a year ago and none on the road in league play. They haven't won a road game since February 2001 when they were still in the Mid-Continent Conference.
Saturday, the Penguins worked so hard to get the ball inside against the zone that too many times they lost the battle with the shot clock and had to force up a bad shot before the buzzer went off.
"We panicked against shot clock tonight too often," Coach John Robic said after the game.
Robic isn't against taking an outside shot in the game, but he wants it to be a good shot.
"Some of our shots were not good ones," he said.
Junior Jamel Porter appears healthy again and played for the first time in three games Saturday, but without scoring. His help inside is needed, although sophomore Brian Radakovich has been playing well in his absence."
Robic says he knows his offense will work, but obviously he hasn't got that across to his players, who seem to work endlessly trying to work the ball inside every time they come up the court.
Loyola of Chicago is not having a great year with a 4-7 record to date and an 0-1 mark in the Horizon League. But the Penguins will have to play their best to win in Chicago.
Women have best game
The YSU women played one of their best games of the season in their last start, which will have been 11 days from Thursday's league opener with Loyola.
That long layoff will be a concern for Coach Ed DiGregorio and his Penguins.
Hopefully sophomore Jen Perugini will be able to keep the pace going that she set against Akron when she scored 20 points to lead the team to a 68-59 victory.
The Penguins also need another game like that from senior point guard Maggie Johnston, who came off the bench and ignited the YSU attack against Akron.
Johnston is bothered by tendonitis in both knees and hopefully the rest she has gotten over the holidays will help them to be stronger for this important part of the season.
The Penguins need for someone other than Perugini or Johnston to step up and help this offense, someone like junior Jessica Forsythe or sophomore Jessica Olmstead.
Both are capable scorers and who have scored at times this season, but with four players going well in the offense the Penguins will be that much tougher.
YSU goes into the Loyola contest with a 3-5 record, mainly because of injuries and illness that have taken two top players for the rest of the season.
Junior starter Cathy Hanek of Ursuline and freshman standout Ashlee Russo of Boardman are both out for the year. Somebody has to step up and fill those voids.
XPete Mollica covers YSU athletics for The Vindicator. Write him at & lt;a href=mailto:mollica@vindy.com & gt;mollica@vindy.com & lt;/a & gt;.