YSU stayed hot behind the 3-point line for a 92-46 victory at the Beeghly Center as the Penguins finished their non-conference schedule with a record of 7-4.

Penguins women’s basketball coach John Barnes felt his team did what they needed to do.

“I’m just happy that we were able to take care of business like we wanted to,” he said. “Nobody got hurt, which is always a big key for us.

“We went into the Christmas break with some confidence. Players can get home and recharge, spend some time with family and friends, and come back ready to go for conference play.”

Correspondent photo / Robert Hayes Quinece Hatcher saves the ball from going out of bounds during the first quarter.

A big catalyst in YSU’s success on Friday afternoon was their success from beyond the arc. The Penguins shot 40 percent from the 3-point line on 16-of-40 shots.

Freshman Maddie Schires led the Penguins with five 3-pointers for a game-high 15 points on 5-of-10 shooting from beyond the arc.

YSU is in the second game of a four-game homestand after a three-game road trip, and Schires felt the team was just happy to play in front of the home fans.

“We were just confident in our shot,” she said. “We’re at home, and we haven’t had a home game in a long time besides the one we had on Wednesday.

“We were excited to get back out on our home court and just knock down some shots.”

Correspondent photo / Robert Hayes Deleah Gibson drives in toward the paint during the third quarter at YSU.

Barnes felt the Muskingum’s defensive scheme gave YSU some extra opportunities from the 3-point line.

“They played a lot of zone, and they didn’t really want us to get anything,” Barnes said. “They were doubling inside, digging inside, kinda daring us to shoot.

“We got some pretty good shooters on the team, and they stepped up and knocked them down.”

YSU’s 16 made 3-pointers tied the single-game school record that was set on the road in 2012 and 2015, but broke the home single-game record of 15 that was set against UMBC in 2016.

Quinece Hatcher had the second-highest total on the team with 13 points. Taylor Petit, Ny’Dajah Jackson, and McKenah Peters all had 11 points each in the winning effort.

It was the yearly school day game for YSU, and roughly 1,300 children from seven different schools attended the game. Schires felt the her team feed off of the crowd’s energy.

“It’s just so much fun seeing all the kids,” she said. “They get so excited especially when we make a shot or a cool pass or something. They always get really excited.

“It’s always nice to have them here and also helps us with the energy.”

Mary Dunn, Emma VanZanten and Amara Chikwe have all been sidelined due to injuries which caused the Penguins to face some adversity in the early stages of the season. The Penguins are playing with 10 healthy players.

Nonetheless, YSU has won six out of its last eight contests, including four straight wins at home. Schires feels recent success made her team confident going into Christmas break.

“Through it all we just stayed confident and believed in ourselves,” Schires said. “It’ll be good to have them back, though.”

YSU begins conference play in the Horizon League on Dec. 28 in a home contest against IUPUI with tip-off set for 1 p.m.