Cold winds were blustering outside of James A. Rhodes Arena, but the Zips’ shooters were smoking hot in the building on Tuesday. Akron road a season-best shooting performance both from the floor and beyond the arc to earn head coach, Jodi Kest, her 400th victory of her career, as the Zips defeated Youngstown State by a score of 75-58.

Kest is in her 25th season coaching collegiate basketball, earning victories at Wilkes University, Gannon University, and Texas A&M-Corpus Christi before becoming the all-time winningest coach in Akron program history. Tuesday’s win was Kest’s 174th as the leader of the Zips, her highest total with any school that she has coached.

The Akron squad shot lights out throughout Tuesday’s matchup against the Penguins. A field goal percentage of 47.4 (27-of-57) and a three-point percentage of 48.1 (13-of-27) were both season highs for the Zips as they move to 4-3 on the year.

Akron trailed heading into the second quarter, but caught fire and scored 14 unanswered points to begin the frame and grab a 31-26 lead. The Zips shot 69.2 percent (9-of-13) from the floor, and an incredible 75.0 percent clip (3-for-4) from long distance during their impressive second quarter.

Sophomore, Shaunay Edmonds, and redshirt junior, Megan Sefcik, combined to score 39 points to lead the Akron offensive attack. Each player went 4-for-8 from three-point range, with Edmonds adding a career-high seven assists and four steals to her season-best 19 points. Sefcik’s 20 point game matched her career-high for the second time already this season. Sefick has now scored in double-figures in five straight games and has hit at least three triples in six different contests.   

Sophomore, Shayna Harmon, was also in double digits, scoring 10 points on the night. Senior, Greta Burry, hauled in eight rebounds and scored seven points, and sophomore, Haliegh Reinoehl, totaled eight points and six boards of her own. Sophomore, Caitlin Vari, was a perfect 2-for-2 from the floor, and contributed five rebounds to the 39 total that the Zips raked in on Tuesday.

Akron now hits the road for the first time in three weeks following a six-game homestand, as the Zips travel to Duquesne on Saturday, Dec. 9. Tip-off is set for 3 p.m. in Pittsburgh. The Zips will return home on Saturday, Dec. 16 to take on Ohio Christian at 4:30 p.m. at James A. Rhodes Arena. Students are admitted free to all home games with their Zip Card.