Correspondent file photo / Robert Hayes. YSU coach John Barnes coaches on opening night of the 2022-2023 season against Wofford.

YOUNGSTOWN — After 10 seasons leading the program, John Barnes stepped down as head coach of the Youngstown State women’s basketball program on Friday.

Barnes had been on leave since before the start of the regular season to tend to “personal family matters.”

“After much thought and with a mix of emotions, I am stepping down from my role as head women’s basketball coach at Youngstown State,” Barnes said in a statement on Friday. “I am grateful for the unwavering support of the YSU community and the Mahoning Valley. The players, coaches and fans will forever be in my heart and made this an extremely difficult decision.

“I can’t thank director of athletics Ron Strollo enough for all his support over the last decade. I will treasure all the memories I’ve made over the last 10 years and never forget what we have accomplished together. Penguin pride will always run through my blood! Thank you, Youngstown Nation, for allowing me to be a part of something truly special.”

The team was notified of Barnes’ resignation late Friday afternoon, Strollo told the Tribune Chronicle and Vindicator.

John Nicolais, who has served as acting head coach since Barnes went on leave on Oct. 2, will now serve as interim head coach for the remainder of the season.

Strollo told the Tribune Chronicle and Vindicator that he would take the next six weeks to evaluate Nicolais and the Penguins’ coaching staff, while also considering all their options for the Penguins head coaching job.

YSU is 7-12 this season and 3-6 in the Horizon League, and are coming off a 66-57 victory over Purdue Fort Wayne on Thursday night.

Barnes leaves YSU as the second-winningest coach in program history, with 170 wins under his belt during his 10 seasons with the Penguins. Barnes’ best season came in 2021-2022, when he helped lead YSU to the regular season Horizon League championship and a WNIT appearance. He was named Horizon League Coach of the Year that season.

Under Barnes, Heidi Schlegel and Lilly Ritz were each two-time All-Horizon League First Team selections, and Ritz also won Defensive Player of the Year, a first in program history. Barnes coached six 1,000-point scorers and five players set career records for YSU.

“I want to sincerely thank Coach Barnes for leading our women’s basketball program to a level of consistent competitiveness within the Horizon League and in our region over the last decade,” Strollo said in a statement.

“When he took over, our program was still in the rebuilding phase to try and replicate the tremendous success of the 1990s. Under Coach Barnes’ leadership, our team reached the postseason five times and won its first regular-season conference championship in more than 20 years. He absolutely left the program in a better place than when he arrived 10 years ago. John is a friend to many, both in our department and within the Youngstown community, and we wish him well as he moves on from his time as a Penguin.”

Prior to Barnes’ arrival in Youngstown, he was an assistant coach at Green Bay, Michigan and Wisconsin, and was the head coach at Michigan Tech, his alma mater, for seven seasons.

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