Correspondent photo / Robert Hayes YSU freshman Lydia Wilkerson hits the ball into play during the Penguins' home series against Green Bay last week.

YOUNGSTOWN — Back in the fall, before the start of the 2024 spring season, Youngstown State softball coach Brian Campbell began to see what his team might be capable of.

The Penguins were returning nine experienced upperclassmen, while also adding seven freshmen to the roster. Right away, Campbell started to see that mix of youth and experience come together.

“It’s attributed to the upperclassmen teaching the younger players what we do here, how we work and how we approach things here,” Campbell said. “The freshmen were able to grasp that pretty quick. I saw that a little bit towards the end of fall and coming into the spring, it picked right back up when we got in in January.

“To me, we’ve always been a slow-starting team. We go down south and we don’t touch dirt — we’re in the WATTS, which is a beautiful facility, but it’s not dirt. So when we go down there, usually our first part of the season isn’t as good.”

But instead of starting slow, since the beginning of the season, YSU has been on a tear.

After winning their first four games of the spring at the Gardner-Webb tournament and then progressing through a pair of other tournaments in the south, the Penguins have put together a 22-11 overall record and had won 11 straight games, up until a defeat at Oakland on Friday.

As a result, YSU is 9-1 in the Horizon League and sits all alone atop the conference standings.

“To win 11 straight games, you need to have all aspects of the game, coming from pitching, catching, defense, hitting, role players — it’s all played a significant role,” fifth-year and Cardinal Mooney alum Conchetta Rinaldi said. “Winning 11 straight games is pretty tough to do, so we need everyone.”

Like Rinaldi said, YSU has been the most complete team in the conference so far this season, which is a big reason why the Penguins find themselves in the position they are.

As a team, YSU leads the Horizon League in batting, with a team average of .300, and pitching, with an overall ERA of 3.13.

“I would just say, at practice and during our practice time, we’ve been very specific on what we want to work on,” senior pitcher and Champion alum Sophie Howell said. “Each week, we all set goals for ourselves in front of the team. You go around, say what goal you have, and then during the week if you’re achieved it or where you’re at with your goals. So I think just us having goals each week, and making sure that we’re doing our best to achieve that goal and give 100% effort in every aspect during practice has definitely helped us get to where we are.”

But in recent weeks, the Penguins have made a conscious effort to shore up their defense and fielding, as well, since the team is ranked just fourth in fielding percentage.

“You win ballgames by your defense, and that’s one thing that we’ve really concentrated on a little bit more — the defensive aspect,” Campbell said. “We’re not bad on defense, don’t get me wrong, but when you put the game together, it’s about the three aspects — the hitting, the pitching and defense. Sometimes you have to rely on one, or sometimes you’re able to rely, and we hope to rely, on all three of them.”

One of the biggest differences this season for the Penguins has been their increased depth.

Last year, YSU had just two players finish the season batting over .300, but so far this year, the Penguins have six players batting above .300.

Freshman Lydia Wilkerson and grad student Sara Fessler have led YSU’s offensive attack. The duo have been neck-and-neck at the top of the Penguins’ batting numbers, Fessler is hitting .351, while Wilkerson is right there at .350. Fessler has the most home runs with six, and earned Horizon League Player of the Week honors this week after hitting four home runs across five games last week.

But the hitting isn’t limited to just those two. Senior Elyssa Imler flourished during YSU’s 11-game winning streak. During that stretch, Imler hit .485 and racked up 11 RBIs. Rinaldi, and seniors Hailey Niederkohr and Jillian Jakse have each also been hitting over .300.

“I think it’s just hitters becoming confident,” Rinaldi said. “When you’re a confident hitter, nothing else matters. No pitcher matters. It’s just about you and going up there and being the toughest out you can be. I think once we have one hitter, it can catch fire — hitting is contagious. So I think just setting the tone and giving the other hitters that confidence as well really just kind of keeps us going.”

At pitcher, Howell has taken a significant step forward this season. So far, she’s been the best pitcher in the conference with a 1.81 ERA and a record of 14-5.

“I think I’ve noticed a lot more (from myself) mentally, to be honest, even if you don’t really think about that side,” Howell said. “I think just making sure I have 100% confidence in myself every time I’m out there — obviously my mechanics, working corners a lot, making sure I don’t chase pitchers and stuff like that, which I didn’t really focus on before and critiquing those little things — it makes a big difference.”

Just like in the batting lineup, YSU’s pitching depth has been strong. Behind Howell, freshman Autumn Behlke and senior Devan Ryan have each maintained winning records.

But even with where YSU currently stands, the Penguins still have 20 games left to play this season, including four more series in Horizon League play. After the defeat to the Golden Grizzlies on Friday, the Penguins will finish the series with a doubleheader today in Michigan.

Still, YSU remains in position to chase its second-ever Horizon League regular season and tournament titles come the end of the season.

“We still have (14) more conference games. If you start thinking about that (14th) game, you’re not approaching it the right way,” Campbell said. “To me, it’s one game at a time. That’s the way I want these players and young ladies to look at it. Every year, for 300-some Division I schools, what’s their goal? To win a conference championship. Everyone has that goal, and we do too. But to reach that goal, it’s about taking care of who’s in front of you next, and that’s the most important thing.”

Have an interesting story? Contact Neel Madhavan by email at nmadhavan@tribtoday.com. Follow him on X, formerly Twitter, @NeelMadhavan.