Schlegel stays hot as YSU wins again

Senior forward has had back-to-back games of 38 points

Staff report

VALPARAISO, IND.

Two years ago, then-sophomore Heidi Schlegel watched senior Brandi Brown carry the Youngstown State women’s basketball team over the final month of the season.

Now it’s her turn.

Schlegel scored 38 points for the second straight game and the Penguins won their fourth straight game, defeating Valparaiso 87-69 on Saturday at The Athletics-Recreation Center..

“The last two games, I’ve definitely reflected on that,” Schlegel said of Brown’s performance, which featured three games with at least 30 points in a two-week span. “I’m really glad I was able to learn from her and take some pointers.”

Schlegel earned Horizon League player of the week honors on Monday after averaging 19.5 points and 12 rebounds in last week’s wins over Oakland and Detroit. She’s been even better this week, leading the Penguins to a come-from-behind win at Milwaukee on Wednesday before Saturday’s convincing victory.

“My mindset before the game was that I only have a few games left to play and I need to play as hard as I can and not pass up shots,” she said. “I have to give credit to my teammates — they have really looked to get me the ball and trusted me with that.”

When asked if YSU coach John Barnes had urged her to shoot the ball more, she said, “No, it’s definitely happened more naturally. It’s just surreal. Scoring that many points, it doesn’t feel like it’s real. I’m just glad we’re winning and I’m helping my team.”

Schlegel was 16-of-24 from the floor, including 3-of-6 from 3-point range and 3-of-5 from the foul line. She also led the Penguins with 11 rebounds.

Kelsea Newman scored 19 points, Indiya Benjamin added 14 points and seven assists and Latisha Walker had eight points and 10 rebounds.

Abby Dean had 15 points and Jasmyn Walker had 12 points and 11 rebounds for Valparaiso (6-19, 2-10).

YSU (19-7, 8-5) had lost four of five games before the current winning streak, with three of those coming by one possession. Schlegel said a few of the losses were simply the result of having young players in close games.

“We’ve learned from those experiences and I think they’re going to help us in our last couple games,” she said. “We got through that tough part of the season and now I think we’re over the hump. We’re back to where we were at the beginning of the season.”