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YOUNGSTOWN -- BABY Steps. Shuffling feet. Crawling. A couple bigger lunges. Some falls -- forward and backward.
It's a process.
Youngstown State has seen its women's basketball team go from back-to-back 20-win seasons to a team struggling to find its identity and footing in the Horizon League.
Three starters from last year's team -- Sarah Cash, Nikki Arbanas and Kelsea Newman -- are out for the season with various knee injuries.
Sophomore Alison Smolinski, who was in concussion protocol for the past week, came back and led the Penguins (6-10, 2-3 Horizon League) with a team-high 19 points in Saturday's 76-70 victory over Valparaiso. Her defensive and offensive presence is necessary for YSU to be successful.
It was part of YSU beating a Crusaders team that remained winless in league play.
Baby steps.
Freshman center Mary Dunn, a 6-3 player, has become one of the top newcomers in the Horizon League -- even garnering Freshman of the Week honors a handful of times.
Her 18 points against Valparaiso was part of another solid performance by the post player. She's becoming a reliable part of this year's team, which needs to find a semblance of consistency. Dunn has brought that to a team that lost a solid post player in Cash, a Lordstown native who led the team in scoring and rebounds last season.
Baby steps.
Morgan Brunner is definitely the surprise of the season. The Wheeling, W. Va., native has been an integral part of Penguins' recent success. She scored in double figures in the last four games and had a combined 37 points in the last two -- including a game-high 20 in Thursday's victory against UIC.
Brunner should get consideration for Horizon League Freshman of the Week. Not bad for a walk-on player who had very limited minutes prior to those four contests with hardly any scoring.
This isn't the first time YSU has seen a walk-on have success. Cash was a walk-on and excelled despite being thrusted into the Penguins lineup her freshman year. She, like Brunner, eventually became a starter her freshman season.
Baby steps.
YSU coach John Barnes knows what his team has -- limited upperclassmen leadership and plenty of youthful talent. Both Dunn and Brunner are playing 30-plus minutes and looking less like freshmen every game.
The Penguins won against the two winless teams in league play, but the true test comes tonight when it hosts Cleveland State at 7 p.m., to end a three-game homestand. YSU's progress is slow but steady. The Penguins are moving in the right direction. With the emerging freshmen talent, not limited to Brunner and Dunn, YSU has plenty to look toward in the 2017-18 season.
CSU (9-7, 4-1) poses a great challenge for the Penguins, which lost in Cleveland, 71-68, on Dec. 31.
Win or lose tonight, YSU is taking the steps needed to emerge from the bottom half of the Horizon League.
One thing YSU needs to address is rebounding (Penguins were on the short end of a 42-to-31 deficit against Valparaiso). The good news was YSU had 16 assists to eight turnovers in that game.
"It is easier to give them fewer things to think about," said Barnes of working with so many freshmen on the roster. "The more you give them, it makes it tougher on them. They're getting better in all aspects. Rebounding is something we worked on since summer. I don't think we're super long or athletic, so it can be tougher. We don't necessarily do a great job of boxing out every single time, which we have to do it -- at least shrink that margin."
It's all about the baby steps.