Correspondent file photo / Robert Hayes. YSU sophomore Ayla Ray watches a ball in play after hitting it during a game against Cleveland State last season at the YSU Softball Complex.

YOUNGSTOWN — Coming off a regular season Horizon League championship in 2024, last year was a season of growth for the Youngstown State softball team.

With an inexperienced roster that included seven sophomores and six freshmen, the Penguins had their share of growing pains, finishing 14-39 overall and last in the conference standings at 6-17. However, those young players gained plenty of valuable playing time throughout the season.

Now with a year of experience under their belts, along with some new roster additions, YSU hopes this year’s group can take that next step forward in their development, as the Penguins get set to open the 2026 season on Friday at the Gardner-Webb Runnin’ Bulldog Classic in North Carolina.

“We knew we were inexperienced, so it was an opportunity for them, the younger players, to get playing time. That was very important,” head coach Brian Campbell said. “Obviously we know that the season didn’t turn out the way we would like it to be, but by them getting an opportunity to play a lot of the freshmen … that experience is definitely going to help us.”

YSU returns 11 letterwinners and six starters from last year’s squad, including sophomore Ayla Ray, juniors Macy Littler and Lydia Wilkerson and seniors Kennedy Dean, Bree Kohler and Ashlyn Bishop.

Wilkerson was the Penguins’ leading hitter last season with a .384 average, as she and slap-hitter Littler (.346) proved to be two of the top-10 hitters in the conference. Wilkerson also earned All-Horizon League Second-Team honors by leading the league in hits with 66.

Dean is back behind the plate, while Ray, a two-time state champion at Austintown Fitch, had a breakout season in her first year of college softball last year, batting .321 with 23 RBIs.

“I think any experience is good experience, no matter win or lose,” Littler said. “You’re still playing the game of softball. So getting that experience that we did last year will make us a lot better this year.”

Joining that group of returners are 11 newcomers made up of six freshmen and five transfers. The transfer class — consisting of sophomore Bella O’Brien (Tiffin), juniors Selah Moyer (Niagara) and Tai Turner (St. Peter’s) and seniors Gabbie Evans (Ball State) and Emma Gilkerson (Cleveland State) — brings in plenty of additional experience.

“I think it came down to the right fit. A lot of them did a wonderful job at their old schools,” Campbell said. “The five we brought in, we were very fortunate to bring these individuals in with experience that actually put numbers up where they were at their old schools.”

Gilkerson is a two-time All-Horizon League selection with the Vikings, who owns a career average of .306 with 20 home runs and 72 RBIs and helped lead CSU to the regular season conference title last year before the program was disbanded due to budget cuts.

Both Moyer and Turner were their program’s second-leading hitters last year. Moyer batted .323 at Niagara and led the team with seven home runs, while Turner batted .352 at St. Peter’s with 11 doubles and 32 RBIs.

“This year’s team seems like we can go a lot deeper,” Campbell said. “In the past, we’ve been at nine, 10 lineup wise. This year, it seems we’re a little bit deeper to where we have probably 13, maybe 13 players that have a chance to be rotating in the lineup this year. … We’ve always been around 11 to 12 in years past. Last year it was a little different, and this year’s obviously getting back to what we’re used to.”

In the circle, O’Brien is a McDonald product who makes her return to the Mahoning Valley after posting an 11-1 record with a 2.51 ERA in 26 appearances and 16 starts for the Dragons last year. She joins a young YSU pitching room that features two freshmen and three sophomores.

Kelsey Ogin and Autumn Boyd both spent plenty of time in the circle for the Penguins last season. Ogin had the team’s most starts and appearances last year, finishing with a 6-11 record and a 4.99 ERA, while Boyd was 1-8 in 18 appearances with a 7.79 ERA.

“I think when you look at today’s game, softball-wise, it’s been by committee a lot more in recent years, and that’s probably what we’ll be looking at this year,” Campbell said. “So many innings, so having someone else come in just to change things up, that’s what we’re focusing on a little bit this year. But if the pitcher’s pitching real well, you’re not going to pull them either. So we’re excited to see what they’re capable of doing.”

The Penguins will play their first 22 games on the road, which includes the Gardner-Webb Tournament, the USC Upstate Tournament and a pair of tournaments at Longwood.

YSU’s home opener comes on March 18 against Saint Francis (Pa.) and the Penguins open Horizon League play against Detroit Mercy on March 20.

“Horizon League has always been a tough conference. Every day you have to show up. It’s a three-game series and anything can happen,” Campbell said. “This 22-game road stretch that we’re going to go on here is going to start preparing us for conference play.”