Massachusetts Fall To Penguins In Final FIU Classic Matchup

Miami-- University of Massachusetts women's basketball (8-2, 0-0 MAC) fell to Youngstown State (8-4, 0-0 Horizon), 69-72, during a Saturday afternoon matchup at Ocean Bank Convocation Center.

The Minutewomen showed flashes of strength throughout the contest, shooting 42.9 percent from the field and knocking down eight triples, along with a strong defensive showing totaling five steals and five blocks. Despite clutch shooting from Yahmani McKayle down the stretch, the Penguins three-point barrage was too much to overcome.

Sophomore Guard Yahmani McKayle led the Minutewomen with a strong showing, posting a career-high 25 points and five rebounds. Three other Minutewomen tallied double-digit points in the day game: Megan Olbrys (14), Allie Palmieri (13), and Ayanna Franks (11).

Breaking Down The Action

Back-to-back layups from Olbrys and Franks gave the Minutewomen an early 4-0 lead just 1:16 into action.
Olbrys found an open McKayle who knocked down a triple with five minutes left in the quarter.
Palmieri added another three-point shot, pulling Massachusetts into the lead, 15-12, with three minutes left in the first quarter.
Less than a minute of game clock later, Olbrys nailed a baby hook in the paint.
Palmieri knocked down her second trey of the day off a feed from Aiyanna Perkins with 1:28 remaning in the opening frame.
McKayle finished out the first quarter with a driving layup from Palmieri's defensive rebound.
The Minutewomen went on a small 5-0 run midway through the second quarter, with Franks finishing through contact and converting the and-one.
Lilly Ferguson secured her first points of the game following an UMass timeout with five minutes left in the half.
McKayle hit consecutive three-pointers, including one with five seconds left in the half, but UMass was still unable to pull ahead the Penguins, trailing 37-40 at the break.
Palmieri started the scoring in the second half with a layup two and a half minutes in.
The Minutewomen ended the third quarter on a 6-2 run, trailing 49-60 entering the fourth.
The Minutewomen started the first half of the final quarter on an 8-0 run.
Following a jumper at 4:19, Palmieri hit double-digit points.
With seconds remaing, Palmieri hit nothing but net from beyond the arc with three seconds left, and would prove to be UMass' final points, the contest ending the game 69-72

By The Numbers
4: Three Minutewomen secured double-digit points in the contest- McKayle (25), Olbrys (14), Palmieri (13), Franks (11).
8: The Minutewomens longest run of the match, 8-0.
34: Massachusetts points scored in the paint.
62: McKayle shot 62 percent from beyond the arch, going 5-8.

Up Next
The Minutewomen will return home for their first MACtion contest against Western Michigan on Wednesday, December 31, at 1:00 p.m., on ESPN+, in Amherst, Mass.
Links and live updates available at umassathletics.com or @UMassWBB on X (Twitter).

Scoreboard

Next Event

Team Stats

Yahmani McKayle

Megan Olbrys

Allie Palmieri

Ayanna Franks

Players Mentioned

Lilly Ferguson

Ayanna Franks

Yahmani McKayle

Megan Olbrys

Allie Palmieri

Aiyanna Perkins

Scoreboard

University of Massachusets Athletics