COLUMBUS, Ohio (Nov. 16, 2014) – The Saint Francis University women's basketball team opened up its 2014-15 campaign giving Ohio State everything it could handle, but fell 113-97 to the Buckeyes on Sunday afternoon at Value City Arena.

The Red Flash (0-1) never led in the contest, but gave the Buckeyes (1-1) a scare after several key runs got them within two points, including just a two-point deficit at halftime. Alexa Hayward (Beaver Falls, Pa./Blackhawk) scored 35 points to lead SFU, with help from six 3-pointers.

Saint Francis got a significant contribution from junior transfer Kamari Talley (Camden, N.J./Woodrow Wilson) in her SFU collegiate debut, she scored 11 points and grabbed eight rebounds. Aisha Brock (Jacksonville, Fla./Potter's House Christian Academy) added 14 points and nine rebounds, while Maya Wynn (Reisterstown, Md./McDonogh) scored 10 in her collegiate debut to round out the players in double-figures for the Flash. The Red Flash grabbed 25 offensive rebounds in the game and scored 28 second chance points.

"I am proud of the effort we gave today. I liked the way we played on the road against a very good Ohio State team," said third-year head coach Joe Haigh. "There were some encouraging signs along with some things we can clean up both offensively and defensively going into Tuesday's game."

Ohio State got strong contributions from Ameryst Alston (39 points) and Kelsey Mitchell (28 points). Alexa Hart was two blocks shy of a triple-double as she posted 18 points, 11 rebounds, and eight blocks.

Wynn scored off an alley-oop pass from Hayward for SFU's first basket of the game. Ohio State jumped to a 20-8 lead in just four minutes before the Flash settled in.

OSU continued its hot shooting and extended its lead to 18 at 37-19 with 10:11 to play in the opening period. Hayward and Taylor Allison (State College, Pa./State College) knocked down back-to-back three's and SFU started to gain momentum.

SFU trailed then 51-41 with 4:11 to go in the first frame. It would go on a 14-6 run over that remaining time and only was behind 57-55 at halftime. Hayward scored seven consecutive points to spark the late run before the break.

Ohio State came out of the locker room hot and went on a 13-3 run to open the second half and led 70-58 with 15:37 to play. The 3-pointers however kept flowing for SFU as Hayward and Brock combined for three of them to spark a 10-0 run, forcing a Buckeyes timeout with 12:55 to play.

The Buckeyes followed with a 14-4 run of its own and then extended its lead to 12 at 84-72 halfway through the second period. OSU took control of the game late and started to pull away after a few transition baskets.

Adila Gathers (Buffalo, N.Y./Tapestry Charter) scored eight points and pulled down six rebounds in her collegiate debut. All 11 active players saw time in the game for SFU. SFU shot 39.2% for the game (40-102), while the Buckeyes finished at 53% (44-83).

Saint Francis has a short turnaround as Buffalo visits Loretto on Tuesday night for a 7 p.m. home opener.