BOARDMAN, Ohio (Tuesday, April 1, 2008) - College Hockey Mid-America announced this weekend that Youngstown State University defenseman Zach Kusek earned a place on the All-Conference 2nd Team for the second consecutive season.

This season for the Penguins, Kusek was second on the team in scoring, racking up 12 goals and 15 assists. Combined with the 42 points he scored a year ago, the Parma native has now collected 69 points in his collegiate career.

"Zak has been a leader all year both on and off the ice," said Penguins head coach Rocky Russo. "He did an excellent job of balancing his school work and his leadership responsibilities with the team. Obviously, as a defenseman, to be second on the team in scoring, he played a big part in what we accomplished this year."

Kusek joins forwards Tony Attanucci (West Virginia), J.L. Feely (West Virginia), Luke Wawrzeniak (Duquesne), defenseman Mato Kret (West Virginia), and goaltender Ed Nusser (Pittsburgh) on the second team.

"He was just a sophomore this year, and we are expecting some big things next year," Russo says. "This is Zak's second year with this honor, and I am expecting him to be a first-teamer next year. I expect him to play a major role in a big turn-around I have planned for the program."

The Youngstown State University Hockey Team is based out of the Ice Zone and is sponsored by the B.J. Alan Company - Phantom Fireworks, located in Youngstown, Ohio.

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BOARDMAN, Ohio (Tuesday, January 29, 2008) - It had been since a 3-1 triumph over the Syracuse Orange back on October 27 that the Youngstown State University hockey team had last tasted victory.

With nearly three months in the making, and College Hockey Mid-America rival John Carroll University coming into the Ice Zone on January 16, the Penguins were finally able to get over the hurdle, winning 6-2.

"The team played hard for 60 minutes, came together and did the job," said YSU head coach Rocky Russo about the team's win over the Blue Streaks. "It's been a long season, tough for these guys, and it was good to get the monkey off our backs."

Since the win, the Penguins have not fared as well, losing at No. 13 West Virginia 6-3 and at unranked Pittsburgh 7-4 two weekends ago, before falling twice this past weekend at home against No. 23 Adrian College - 5-1 on Friday night and 8-1 on Saturday.

"I thought we played very well on Friday, but fell apart for about six minutes in the second period, and that was the difference in the game," said Russo about this past weekend against Adrian.

"Saturday, we didn't make too many mistakes, but the mistakes we did make were crucial turnovers near the blue line that caused odd-man rushes, and they capitalized."

The Penguins (4-25-2) will now enjoy a weekend off before hosting Mercyhurst and No. 16 Niagara on February 9-10, and No. 19 Robert Morris University on February 17 to finish out the regular season.

Youngstown State will then host the CHMA Playoffs on February 22-24 at the Ice Zone in Boardman. The Youngstown State University Hockey Team is based out of the Ice Zone and is sponsored by the B.J. Alan Company - Phantom Fireworks, located in Youngstown, Ohio.

BOARDMAN, Ohio (Monday, January 14, 2008) - The woes for the Youngstown State University hockey team continued this past weekend, as they fell 4-1 to IUP on Friday night and 9-3 to No. 24 Duquesne on Saturday afternoon.

After a 5-2 loss at home last Wednesday night against No. 9 Kent State, the Penguins record is now 0-3 in the second semester.

The Penguins (3-21-2) will try to get back on track this Wednesday night at home against College Hockey Mid-America rival John Carroll. Game time at the Ice Zone is slated for 7:15 p.m. YSU is 0-2 against the Blue Streaks this season.

The Penguins then take to the road this weekend to face two more CHMA foes, facing off against No. 13 West Virginia on Sunday night and unranked Pittsburgh on Monday.

The Youngstown State University Hockey Team is based out of the Ice Zone and is sponsored by the B.J. Alan Company - Phantom Fireworks, located in Youngstown, Ohio.

BOARDMAN, Ohio (Tuesday, January 8, 2008) - With a month's time elapsed since the last time the Youngstown State Hockey team laced up the skates, the Penguins take to the ice Wednesday night at the Ice Zone in their first game of the second semester.

The team started practice back on January 1 under the impression of going full tilt last Saturday night at the Pittsburgh Panthers, but the game was postponed until Jan. 21. The extra time off, however, allowed the Penguins a few extra days of much-needed rest.

"It was actually a blessing in disguise," Penguins head coach Rocky Russo said. "We still have a couple guys that are at the tail end of some injuries, and to get the opportunity to bump a big league game like that back a couple weeks is big for us."

The Penguins suffered through their toughest start in history during the first semester, going 3-18-2, and are sitting in last place in College Hockey Mid-America. However, with the addition of a few new players, along with the return of some injured veterans, the outlook for the next two months is considerably more positive.

"We brought in some more skill guys that will generate some offense for us," Russo says. "Unfortunately, we lost a couple guys that we were hoping to have for the second semester. Our goaltending is going to be strong here in the second semester though, and having Lee Hlavay back as well is going to be an advantage for the defensive corps."

Goaltenders Gary Biggs and Matt Jacob continue to be bright spots for the Penguins, along with forwards Naaman Moorman and Zak Kusek, each with 23 points on the year.

Youngstown State's first game back will be one of their toughest all season, as they face-off Wednesday night against #9 Kent State. The Golden Flashes have accumulated a 16-7-0 record this season, good for fourth place in the Central States Collegiate Hockey League, and are already 2-0-0 against YSU this season.

"They are a good team - they are an offensively gifted team," says Russo. "(Head coach Jarret Whidden) is a coach out of a different mold. He looks outside of the box with some of the systems that he runs. We have seen them a couple of times already this season, so hopefully we'll be prepared to face those different challenges this week."

Game time Wednesday is slated for 7:15 p.m. at the Ice Zone. The Penguins then host IUP on Friday night at 9:45 p.m., before heading to #24 Duquesne on Saturday afternoon.

The Youngstown State University Hockey Team is based out of the Ice Zone and is sponsored by the B.J. Alan Company - Phantom Fireworks, located in Youngstown, Ohio.