Correspondent photo / Robert Hayes. Youngstown State guard Haley Thierry drives the ball into the lane against a defender during the Penguins’ win over Purdue Fort Wayne on Jan. 18 at the Beeghly Center.

YOUNGSTOWN — Last season as a sophomore, Youngstown State’s Haley Thierry was still coming into her own as a college basketball player.

She played in 25 of YSU’s 30 games, but never played more than 20 minutes. However, Thierry has taken a step forward this year, and the now-junior is averaging more than 20 minutes per game.

After starting the season coming off the bench, Thierry has played her way into YSU’s starting lineup in each of the past five games. In that time, she’s started to find her groove, filling up the statsheet and contributing to the Penguins in a variety of ways as they’ve won three of their last five games.

“She’s always been able to provide a spark for us — whether early on it was off the bench, which was nice — but now she’s in the lineup and she’s playing really hard,” interim head coach John Nicolais said. “It seems like she’s everywhere. She’s very selfless and does a great job of, if the ball is coming to her, she can see who’s open prior to receiving a pass to get the right person the ball. So she’s always been a one more extra pass type of person. We’re proud of how hard she’s playing, and it’s nice to see her have success out there.”

Throughout the year, Thierry could often be found on the Rosselli Court floor at the Beeghly Center getting up extra shots after games. That extra work has paid off for her.

In the past five games, Thierry’s playing time has jumped considerably since she entered the starting lineup. In Saturday’s win over Milwaukee, she played 36 minutes — the most of her career.

“It’s a big step up for me,” Thierry said. “I feel like my teammates have a lot of confidence in me and always have my back telling me to attack when I can and look to score — just do what I know how to do in the game, and I feel like that’s helped me a lot.”

With her increased playing time, Thierry has responded accordingly statistically, scoring in double figures in each of the past two games. Against IUPUI last week, she had 11 points. Then against the Panthers, she scored 13 points, three shy of her career high.

“Last year when I first came to practice a couple times, I guarded Haley a little bit, and I was just like, ‘Whoa,'” fifth-year Dena Jarrells said. “She’s so crafty and skilled, especially in the guard position. She’s hard to guard — she can create and step around you and just finish with ease. I always thought she was really talented and seeing her step up and get more confidence in herself, it’s been amazing to watch, and I’m so proud of her.”

Thierry’s breakout season is no surprise considering her family’s athletic background. Her late father, John, was the 11th overall pick in the 1994 NFL Draft and played nine seasons in the league as a defensive lineman, including one with the Cleveland Browns in 1999. Also her mother, Elin, played college volleyball at Oklahoma.

But Thierry has a particularly close relationship with her fraternal twin sister, Taylor, who is averaging 12.3 points per game this season for No. 8 Ohio State. The two played together in high school at the Laurel School just outside of Cleveland

“Actually (Saturday) morning, I Facetimed my sister and we were just talking about basketball and she said she was going to watch my game (against Milwaukee),” Thierry said. “So just being able to talk to her about that, text her after games and just say, ‘How can we be better? What did we do wrong? What can we do differently?’ — just being able to have that and to communicate with her is really nice.”

But, Thierry’s overall value to the Penguins isn’t limited to just scoring and stems from her ability to affect the game in a variety of ways.

Despite being a 5-foot-8 guard, Thierry has been one of YSU’s best rebounders, grabbing at least six boards in each of the last four games. In the Penguins’ win over Robert Morris on Jan. 27, Thierry had a career-high 11 rebounds. She also has 17 assists in the last five games.

“The coaches have had a lot of confidence in me,” Thierry said. “So I’ve just been building off that in the game, be it facilitating, defending, rebounding, or getting shots to my teammates, that’s what I’m trying to do.”

Also, her versatility on both ends of the floor are a big part of why she’s been so important to YSU during their recent stretch.

In addition to what she’s been able to do offensively, Thierry’s defense his shined as well, particularly with her placement at the top of YSU’s recently instituted full-court press.

She’s second on the team in total steals this season, finishing with six against the Jaguars and five on Jan. 24 against Northern Kentucky. Plus, she’s also coming off back-to-back games with two blocks.

“We can play her at the top of the press, we can put her on bigs, and we can put her on small (guards),” Nicolais said. “Her athleticism and versatility make her pretty valuable to where she can play multiple positions. So if you play multiple positions, you’re going to be able to maximize your minutes, and she’s playing with a lot of confidence.”

nmadhavan@tribtoday.com