MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. (Dec. 21, 2014) – Alexa Hayward (Beaver Falls, Pa./Blackhawk) scored a season-high 37 points to lead Saint Francis U over Coastal Carolina, 75-72, to earn its first victory of the season inside the Myrtle Beach Convention Center on Sunday evening.

Hayward rebounded from her lowest scoring output of the season at Duquesne on Thursday night and came out firing, scoring the first eight points for the Red Flash (1-8). She knocked down seven 3-pointers, just one shy of tying her SFU record of eight in a game. Aisha Brock (Jacksonville, Fla./Potter's House Christian Academy) also added 14 points, five assists, four steals, and shot nearly 50% from the field.

Saint Francis forced a five-second violation with 1:27 to play, which really set the tone down the stretch, it was one of 27 turnovers that the Red Flash forced. Hayward was fouled on SFU's last possession and sunk both free throws to give the Flash the three point lead. SFU still needed one more stop and they got it after forcing Coastal's A.J. Jordan to an awkward three-point attempt.

The Chanticleers (7-3) had three players reach double-figures, including Jordan, who had a team-high 19 points. CCU only led for 24 seconds total in the game. Coastal shot 33 free throw attempts, compared to just 11 for Saint Francis.

"It was a great and very much needed win today. We fought through a lot of adversity early with [Shaqeia] Stokes' injury and lots of foul trouble and were able to hold on down the stretch," said SFU head coach Joe Haigh. "Lex [Hayward] played a great game again and got her shooting touch back. It's huge to get a win with our young players playing a lot of minutes tonight."

Both teams started on fire to open the game as each team had eight points with only two minutes played, Hayward scored all of them for the Flash. The pace eventually slowed down in the period, but Hayward finished with 21 points before halftime, her most in a half this season.

The score was tied at 18 apiece with 10:31 to play in the first half before SFU embarked on a 16-7 run to close out the period. Adila Gathers (Buffalo, N.Y./Tapestry Charter) added two baskets during the span to go along with a couple Hayward triples. SFU led 34-25 at the break.

CCU went on 8-0 run over just one minute of play at the 15 minute mark of the second half to get the deficit within five points. Taylor Allison (State College, Pa./State College) hit a huge three-pointer to stop the Chanticleers run off a feed from Hayward. Saint Francis had a 6-0 run of its own sparked by a basket from Rochelle Reece (Ajax, Ontario, Canada/Pickering) to get the lead back to double figures.

Reece finished with eight points off the bench in the best game of her young career to date. Corissa Archer (Clermont, Fla./East Ridge) added six points and six rebounds, while Gathers posted four points. Hope Phillips (Marlton, N.J./Bishop Eustace Prep) scored three points and it was one of the most important shots in the game as SFU desperately needed a basket with a short shot clock.

The Red Flash shot 44% (28-64) from the field, their highest total of the season, including a 36% (10-28) clip from beyond the arc. SFU also scored 18 bench points, compared to just three for the Chants.

Saint Francis returns to the hardcourt following a short Holiday recess to face Pittsburgh on Dec. 28 and West Virginia on Dec. 29.