ROCHESTER, Mich. – In the first conference game of the season, Oakland struggled to create consistent offense, losing to Youngstown State 79-68. A late comeback attempt almost came to fruition, but the YSU lead was insurmountable.

The loss was the second of the season for Oakland, their record is now 1-2. Their Horizon League record drops to 0-1 on the young season.

The visiting Penguins rode a hot shooting night all the way to a big victory, scoring the most points as a team this season. After failing to reach 60 points in their previous game, they had 61 by the end of the third quarter, and shot 27-48 from the floor (56%) – 12/23 from deep (52%).

Kahlaijah Dean led Oakland in scoring with 18 points. She shot 6-12 overall, 3-9 from three. The preseason first team candidate also added three steals. Through three games, Dean is averaging 2.67 steals per game and 18.67 points per game.

The Penguins were without their leading scorer, Malia Magestro, due to injury. Junior guard Mady Aulbach started in her place.

Youngstown got off to an early 7-3 lead, an occurrence Oakland hasn't dealt with much this season. Oakland outscored their opponents 48-27 combined in their first two first quarters of the season.

Lamariyee Williams was flashing the defensive skills early, recording two steals in the first. She had four steals in the first half, five total.

Kendall Folley notched her first points at Oakland with a free throw midway through the first quarter. 

Youngstown State was working the ball around, finding good looks from deep and assisting on nearly every made basket. The Penguins shot 5-8 (62.5%) from three in the first quarter and had eight assists on nine made baskets. 

Kayla Luchenbach got the Oakland offense going, hitting back-to-back jumpers in the lane to shrink a nine-point gap to five. Youngstown countered with a 7-2 run to close out the first quarter, leading 23-13 after 10 minutes. 

Both teams endured a drought to begin the second quarter. Oakland scored three points in the first four minutes, and held Youngstown scoreless at the same time. A seven-point run put the game back within one possession with 4:30 remaining in the half, Youngstown leading 23-20. 

After another Youngstown three broke their scoreless bout, Chelsea Olson added more cushion to the lead, scoring five to make it 31-20 with two minutes remaining. 

The Penguins defense, second best in the Horizon coming into the game, held strong in the first quarter. Oakland shot 9-30 (57%) from the floor and 2-11 (18%) from three in the first half. Youngstown held a 13-point lead at half, 38-25.

Youngstown's offense, which had slow starts in their first two games, was alive and thriving in the first. They shot 15-27 (55.6%) from the floor and 8-14 (57%) from deep.

The Penguins continued to fire on all cylinders coming out of halftime. An 8-1 run forced a timeout from the Golden Grizzlies, Youngstown leading 46-26. 

After a YSU-dominated third, the Penguins led 61-41. It was another hot shooting quarter for the Penguins, they shot 9-14 (64%) from the floor, 3-6 (50%) from deep.

Oakland went on a small run midway through the fourth, cutting the YSU lead to 13 after a Dean 3-pointer. With six minutes remaining, Youngstown led 67-54. Oakland went on an 8-1 run over 2:30. 

After forcing multiple turnovers, Oakland was able to cut the lead down to single-digits. With four minutes left, Oakland was down just nine. 

Oakland continued to fight, their run over six minutes was at 19-4, storming back in the game on the strength of their defense. Breanna Perry forced multiple turnovers off inbounds passes to spur the run, and she hit a couple of big shots down low. Perry ended the game with seven points and seven rebounds. 

Youngstown hit two crucial free throws to stretch their lead to nine, and held on for the rest of the game. The Golden Grizzlies outscored YSU 24-16 in the fourth, but couldn't overcome the 20-point deficit. 

The Golden Grizzlies look to get their first win of the conference season and improve to 1-1 in league play on Saturday, Nov. 20 when they host Robert Morris at 2 p.m.