Eastern Michigan Athletics

Tuesday, November 9
Convocation Center
12 p.m.

Eastern Michigan University

0-1,0-0MAC

67
vs
70

Youngstown State

1-0,0-0Horizon

1
2
3
4
F
Youngstown St.
17
17
19
17
70
Eastern Mich.
13
16
23
15
67
Photo by: Steve King/KingStudios

Women's Basketball Drops Home-Opener Against Youngstown State, 70-67

11/9/2021 2:07:00 PM | Women's Basketball

Areanna Combs finished with 19 points and seven assists in loss

Postgame Press Conference

Highlight Video

YPSILANTI, Mich. (EMUEagles.com --
The Eastern Michigan University women's basketball team dropped a hard-fought, 70-67, decision to Youngstown State University today, Nov. 9, inside the Convocation Center.

The Eagles (0-1, 0-0 MAC) had two players score in double figures, led by redshirt senior Areanna Combs (Oklahoma City, Okla.-Putnam City West (Oklahoma State)), who had 19 points, eight rebounds, seven assists, and two steals. Redshirt sophomore Ce'Nara Skanes (Oklahoma City, Okla.-Putnam City West (Florida International) tacked on a double-double with 11 points and 14 rebounds while freshman Lachelle Austin (Redford, Mich.-Wayne Memorial) added nine points and two steals.

How It Happened

Both teams got off to a slow start in the first period of action, however, redshirt senior Danielle Rainey (Cedar Park, Texas-Vista Ridge (Florida)) and junior Kylee O'Hara (Ajax, Ontario-Henry Street (Florida International)) each added a triple as the Eagles trailed 17-13 to close the first. The Penguins grew their lead to 28-15 halfway through the second quarter, its biggest lead of the afternoon, before the Eagles made it a 34-29 YSU advantage heading into the locker rooms.

The Green and White bounced back in the third, taking a 48-46 lead late in the period thanks to a layup from redshirt junior RayJon Harris (Euclid, Ohio-Euclid) and jumper from Rainey. The game continued to swing back-and-forth, with Youngstown State holding on to a 53-52 edge going into the final period. In the fourth, O'Hara drilled a three-pointer with an assist from Combs while Austin nailed another three-ball under pressure to make it a two-point game, 67-65. The Eagles were unable to overcome the deficit, falling to Penguins 70-67.

Game Notes

» Skanes notched a double-double for the Eagles with 11 points and 14 rebounds. Her performance today marks the 13th double-double effort of her career.
» Skanes 
» Combs lead all scorers with 19 points. The redshirt senior has now paced EMU in point production 28 times.
» Combs dished out a team-best seven assists, the 12th time in her career dropping five-or-more dimes.
» The Eagles put on a passing clinic, recording an assist on 67 percent of made baskets.
» O'Hara finished 3-of-5 from beyond-the-arc, her third outing with multiple three-point makes.
» Neither team led by more than five points in the game.
» Eastern Michigan bested Youngstown State in points in the paint (22-to-16), points off turnovers (18-to-10), fast break points (7-3), and rebounds (35-to-33).
» The Green and White shot 7-for-18 from deep (38.9%), better than all but two games from the 2020-21 season (at Southeast Missouri, 10-of-25 (40%), Dec. 6, 2020; Toledo, 11-for-28 (39.3%), Feb. 21, 2021).

Historical Notes
» With her 13th career double-double, Skanes now sits at 10th in all-time program history in career double-doubles. Academic All-American Sarah VanMetre (2003-07) sits atop the list with 17. The statistic has been kept since 1998-99.

Up Next
EMU returns to action Saturday, Nov. 13 with a home game against the University of Detroit Mercy. Tipoff is slated for 7 p.m. with the game being broadcast on ESPN3 and 89.1 FM WEMU. 

Team Stats

YSU
EMU
FG%
.404
.389
3FG%
.500
.389
FT%
.850
.750
RB
33
35
TO
16
14
STL
6
5

Game Leaders

Pts
19
FGM
5
3FGM
1
FTM
8
Pts
11
FGM
4
3FGM
0
FTM
3
Pts
9
FGM
2
3FGM
1
FTM
4
Pts
9
FGM
3
3FGM
3
FTM
0

Players Mentioned

G
/ Women's Basketball
G
/ Women's Basketball
F
/ Women's Basketball
F
/ Women's Basketball
G
/ Women's Basketball
F
/ Women's Basketball
Women's Basketball Practice Highlights Week of Aug. 4, 2025
Sunday, August 10
Inaugural Bowling with the Eagles Event
Friday, August 08
Women's Basketball Practice Highlights Week of July 28, 2025
Friday, August 08
2025 Women's Basketball Alumni Panel
Wednesday, July 30