BOX SCORE EASTON, Pa. (Dec. 4, 2012) – The Saint Francis University men's basketball team led Lafayette by nine points at the break and by as many as 15 points early in the second half but could not hang on for the program's first road non-conference win since the 2008-09 campaign.

The heartbreaking, 61-58, setback at Kirby Sports Center did however play into a promising early-season trend, although it has yet to translate into victories.  The three-point margin was the narrowest non-conference road loss for the Flash since falling to Bucknell, 57-54, on Dec. 7, 2002.

The 2002-03 SFU squad went on to finish .500 (14-14) and 10-8 in the Northeast Conference.

“I thought our energy was tremendous for 40 minutes,” said Saint Francis head coach Rob Krimmel.  “We've played two games back-to-back where, I thought, our effort and focus were fantastic.”

“Late in the game I thought we settled way too often for jump shots instead of driving the basketball.  We missed a couple of layups and in a tight game we need those points.”

The Red Flash jumped out to a quick lead on an Ollie Jackson (Dallas, Texas/Pinkston ) 3-pointer 52 seconds in and did not trail for the remainder of the half.  SFU led by between four and 11 points during the frame before a Kameron Ritter dunk and a Jackson free throw pushed the advantage to 11 with 2:43 to go until the break.

Saint Francis opened the second half with a 10-to-4 run thanks to 3-pointers by Umar Shannon (Atlantic City, N.J./Atlantic City) and Stephon Whyatt (Jersey City, N.J./St. Peter's Prep) and a layup by Ronnie Drinnon (Jamestown, Ohio/Greenview).  Up by its largest margin of the season, the Flash began to foul and Leopard shots began to fall.

By the 3:51 mark, LC's Tony Johnson missed second half of 1-and-1 that would have tied game at 53.  After the teams traded a pair of empty possessions, Layfayette took first lead of the game at 2:18, 54-53, on a Seth Henrick jumper and the ensuing and-1 made it 55-53.

A Whyatt 3-pointer briefly put the Flash back on top, but Lafayette's Joey Ptasinki answered with a pair of free throws with 92 seconds left to give his team the lead for good.

The Leopards converted on 21-of-24 free throw attempts in the game, including 15-of-17 in the second half.  SFU hit on 5-of-6 of its opportunities, which including a perfect 1-of-1 in the second period.

Shannon tallied a game-high 19 points and Whyatt chipped in 12.  Drinnon scored eight and tallied a season- and game-high eight rebounds.

Dan Trist led the Leopards with 16 points.

“This is a tough one but we've just got to keep working hard and we'll get there,” said Krimmel.

Saint Francis plays Lehigh on Veteran Appreciation Day at DeGol Arena on Saturday.  The tip is slated for 2 p.m.  All active members of the U.S. armed forces, veterans and their families (up to six per family) will be admitted free of charge.