Correspondent photo / Robert Hayes Ny’Dajah Jackson of YSU goes up for a shot over Rachel McLimore of IUPUI Saturday at the Beeghly Center.

YOUNGSTOWN — The Saturday afternoon women’s basketball Horizon League opener against IUPUI may not have started well for Youngstown State, but the Penguins overcame a slow first quarter to earn a gritty 75-73 victory over the Jaguars at the Beeghly Center.

Youngstown State has won seven out of its last nine contests dating back to Nov. 16.

“This was just an incredibly tough battle with a really good team,” YSU coach John Barnes said. “I’m proud of the team for how hard they worked and played against a lot more size than what we have and just their ability to find a way to win down the stretch.”

IUPUI was voted to finish third in the Horizon League before the season started.

The Jaguars started the game on a 9-0 run before Quinece Hatcher made a shot with 2:35 left in the first quarter. Overall, YSU was 3-for-12 from the field in the quarter.

It was a stark contrast to the 57.4 percent field-goal shooting that YSU ended the game with, but Barnes knew his team would find a rhythm after a slow start.

“We usually shoot the ball pretty well, and if they’re not going in, eventually they will and we’ve just got to keep taking them and being aggressive,” he said.

“I thought (Ny’Dajah Jackson) came in and really started attacking the rim and we pushed in transition a bit to get some easy shots and that kind of get our confidence up and the 3s followed.”

YSU went 11-for-20 behind the 3-point arc, largely due to the efforts of McKenah Peters, who finished with a career-high 22 points, including six 3-pointers.

“At the start of the game, I was pretty cold,” she said. “I missed my first four 3s, and my assistant coaches just really got in my head and it was just like, ‘McKenah, you can shoot, we believe in you so just continue to shoot if you’re open.’

“The second half I kind of got on a roll and started hitting a couple. My teammates looked for me, got me the ball and when I was open I just shot it and they were falling in the second half.”

The Penguins took their first lead oat 41-39 in the early stages of the third quarter, but that was short-lived as the teams exchanged leads throughout the second half.

IUPUI (6-6, 0-1) had multiple opportunities to take the lead in the closing possessions, but a 3-point attempt by Rachel McLimore at the final buzzer fell short.

Defending Horizon League Player of the Year Macee Williams was a force for IUPUI, as the 6-foot-2 forward posted a double-double with 20 points and 10 rebounds.

“We’ve got one post player (Jen Wendler) and she fouled out,” Barnes said. “She was in foul trouble the whole game, so we have small players that just had to grit their teeth and do the best they can.

“(Williams) did get hers, and I think she earned them. I think she’d say she earned them, so that’s basically all we can ask.”

Chelsea Olson finished behind Peters with 15 points, and Jackson scored 13.

Although they started off league play on a high note, Peters still feels that the Penguins (8-4 overall) have a lot of work to do.

“With it being the first Horizon League game, now we have the whole rest of the season ahead of us,” Peters said. “Coach Barnes said this win will mean nothing if we go and play UIC, like not as hard, so we need to come ready and practice tomorrow to be ready for UIC on Monday and get the job done again.”

Tip-off against the Flames (1-11, 0-1) is set for 7 p.m. on Monday at the Beeghly Center.