Jackson begins rebuild with large freshman class and veteran help
Outside of Green Bay, perhaps no Horizon League program radiated stability quite like Youngstown State in recent years. After Bob Boldon began reconstructing the once-proud program that had fallen on hard times by the late 2000s, John Barnes continued the work after taking over in 2013-14. The subsequent decade witnessed four 20-win seasons, including an HL regular season title in 2021-22, five postseason appearances, and a bevy of highly-accomplished players like Heidi Schlegel, Sarah Cash, Chelsea Olson, Mary Dunn and Lilly Ritz.
But for all of Barnes’ successes, he never managed to clear the final hurdles necessary to bring the Penguins back to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2000, and after a chaotic 2023-24 that saw him take a leave of absence just prior to the start of the year (before eventually resigning a few months later), Youngstown State’s administration decided it was time to start over.
Enter Melissa Jackson, who has spent the last 16 years coaching at northeast Ohio mid-major schools, most significantly at Akron from 2008-23, before spending last season as one of Chris Kielsmeier’s assistants at Cleveland State.
“Honestly, when I got really involved in the Youngstown State job, it was all about the support,” Jackson said. “The support from the athletic department, with our athletic director, Ron Strollo. And then you talk about the fanbase, the community support, they just really love women’s basketball in Youngstown. So it was just an opportunity I could not pass up.”
She has already proven a savvy hire in at least one way, as her local connections and experience have helped smooth a potentially-rocky transition, allowing YSU to continue forward with most of the returning roster and a gigantic previously-signed freshman class. Jackson also managed to add a pair of likely centerpieces through the transfer portal in guard Jewel Watkins and forward Faith Burch.
While one of the rookies, 6-3 West Virginian Ashlynn Van Tassell, will miss the season with a leg injury, monitoring how quickly the remaining five true freshmen and one redshirt freshman work their way into the rotation will likely prove a favorite pastime of Guins fans as the season progresses.
“They’re a really talented bunch, each and every one of them brings something to the table,” Jackson said. “They’re not one-dimensional, they can actually do multiple things, but they complement each other very well.”
Lineup
Malia Magestro – The last remaining player who contributed significantly to YSU’s 2021-22 Horizon League regular season championship team, Magestro is about as consistently productive as players get; she’s averaged between 10.1 and 10.4 points per game in each of the last three seasons. The Hermitage, PA native has a credible outside shot but is at her best when able to move without the ball and paired with someone who can find her for some surprisingly easy buckets. Just as importantly, Magestro will be counted on to help set the culture of the young team as it finds its way.
“Just from being at Youngstown for so long, I’ve gotten to see what culture and the best ways to lead are, so I’m trying to use that to my advantage and create an even better culture,” she said. “I think with so many new faces on the team, that’s really going to be a big thing for us, just knowing who we are as a team, and I think we’re doing a lot of good things already.”
Jewel Watkins – As much as any of her new players, Jackson is excited about Watkins, who starred at Coppin State for two years before something of a lost season at UNC Greensboro in 2023-24. One thing to know about the Columbus product: she loves to shoot. Two years ago, with the Eagles, Watkins hoisted a staggering 9.1 threes per game, third in the nation which made up most of her 15.4 field goal attempts per game. She’s hardly a one-dimensional bomber though. At 5-11, she has the size and length to be effective at all three levels, and on both ends of the floor, as her 6.4 rebounds per game and all-defensive team honors in the MEAC as a sophomore show.
Haley Thierry – After two years of light usage, Thierry saw a sharp uptick in her minutes in 2023-24, and for good reason. She’s a great example of that classic archetype of a player whose stats won’t necessarily explode off a page, but who makes tons of subtle plays that help teams win. Thierry is a very good passer and defender on the perimeter who can still fill it up occasionally, as her 16 points at Robert Morris and 13 against Milwaukee last season show. Undoubtedly, Thierry is particularly looking forward to YSU’s December 14th trip to Ohio State, where her twin sister Taylor plays.
Faith Burch – One of Jackson’s first moves as head coach was recruiting Burch back home to the Mahoning Valley after the power forward spent three years at rival Cleveland State (overlapping with her new head coach in 2023-24, of course). Burch is an athletic – she was a state qualifier in the hurdles as a high school runner – and energetic player who is set for a much bigger role with the Penguins after playing just 11 minutes per game last season. There’s a lot to suggest that she will handle it well, as her production has always outstripped her time on the floor by quite a bit.
“Honestly, she’s so consistent in the energy and effort she brings every day,” Jackson said. “For our team and our makeup, having her experience has been huge, because we have a very young post group with Sarah Baker and Sophia Gregory. So her coming in and being able to lead that group, she’s done a really good job of that.”
Abby Liber – The Saint Louis transfer was asked to play sort of a thankless role in her first season as a Penguin, on a roster that lacked a ton of size outside of Emily Saunders and its post rotation. Still, she added a jolt of energy to the team in some low moments, and her hopping up from the scorer’s table often started a Youngstown State run or ended one by their opponent. Her 16.4 percent defensive rebounding rate gives some insight into that value.
Xoe Rosalez – One of the major open questions for YSU concerns the point guard position, following the graduation of one of the HL’s best in Dena Jarrells, and juco transfer Rosalez figures to get one of the first looks. At Seward County Community College last season, the Texan averaged 9.8 points, 4.4 rebounds and 2.9 assists per game.
Dacia Lewandowski – Lewandowski, who was recruited to Akron by Jackson two years ago, may eventually prove to be another option on the point, once she works back into form following an injury that wiped out her freshman season with the Zips. She offers good size at 5-11 and had a stellar high school career at North Catholic High School in Pittsburgh, including a first-team all-state nod. Lewandowski averaged 16.0 points, 6.0 rebounds, 4.5 assists and 3.0 steals across her prep career.
Mackenzie Hurd, Bella Samz and Abbie Davidson – All three are backcourt players with sophomore eligibility who have been buried on what was previously a veteran roster (they played just 224 minutes combined last season) but now seem primed for more responsibility moving forward. Hurd might be the most intriguing of the trio, as she starred at tiny Nelsonville-York High School in southeast Ohio and despite the hindrance of being away from the metropolitan spotlights, was arguably a top ten player in a state class that included productive HL talent like Liber, Allison Basye (Northern Kentucky), Lauren Scott (Wright State), and Abby Wolterman (IUPUI/NKU).
Sarah Baker – For the most part, YSU won’t need to rely on their huge collection of freshmen before they’re ready, but the one exception to that statement might be in the post, where Burch is the only veteran on the roster that can capably play in that area of the floor. Baker – who was billed as “one of the most sought-after women’s basketball student-athletes in recent years who chose to become a Penguin” when she signed – earned praise from both Jackson and Magestro for her work during summer workouts, and the 6-2 Kentuckian has already shown to be a smart and creative player underneath.
Sophia Gregory – If it’s not Baker, it might be Gregory, a versatile and athletic post player who also had a good summer. She wrapped up her career at West Branch High School with an all-district first-team selection while playing multiple positions, despite her imposing size.
Hayden Barrier, Erica King and Danielle Cameron – Minutes might be scarce for YSU’s three freshman backcourt players, at least early in the season, but each has a high ceiling and may prove impossible to keep off the floor after a while. King is an effective two-way guard, while both Barrier and Cameron were extremely prolific three-point shooters during their high school careers.
“All of the guards are really good shooters,” Magestro said. “All of the freshmen are always in the gym, so I think that really shows a lot. I don’t know, it’s kind of hard to tell right now, but you know they’re all going to be ready.”
“The freshmen are a big piece of our team,” Watkins added. “They’re eager to learn, they’re great listeners, they just have that energy and passion, and they’re happy to be here. Coach Jackson is working on the foundation and the future, so I really think it’s great how she’s incorporating and using the freshmen. We have some really good freshmen with confidence and skill.”
Outlook
In a lot of ways, Youngstown State’s coaching transition has gone about as well as possible, given how established the previous regime was, and the amount of success it achieved. Nevertheless, Jackson has quickly won over a bunch of players she didn’t recruit, while adding a few team leaders through the portal and meshing the whole thing together.
“Obviously, Youngstown has had some success in the past, but I think they were ready for a change, and ready for a new face and a new culture and a new system, so they’ve been great honestly,” she said. “All of our returners have really bought into our culture and our system. That’s been huge for me, to get that buy-in from our upperclassmen, and they’ve been great leaders for our ten new faces.”
That new system promises to be a bit more up-tempo from what the Guins have played in recent years, and there’s enough talent working out of the freshly renovated Beeghly Center to entertain the idea of improving on last year’s 14-18 mark if everything goes according to plan.
However, both Jackson and her players understand that the YSU rebuild is meant to end up in something sustainably successful over the long term, and that process may or may not show immediate results. If Magestro, Watkins and Burch play as they’re capable, and some of the Penguins’ nine healthy freshmen and sophomores show signs of being the team’s new core over the following couple seasons, 2024-25 will be a success regardless of the final record.
“Every single day, our players are going to bring energy, they’re going to bring effort, and they’re going to bring a hunger to compete,” Jackson said.
