Lexington, Ky. – The Bluffton University Beavers used a second-half charge to pull away from the Transylvania women's basketball team in a 67-44 defeat for the Pioneers in Saturday afternoon's conference opener at the Beck Center.

The Pioneers dropped to 3-2 overall, and 0-1 in Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference play after Saturday's result.

Saturday's contest was a matchup of two teams who finished in the top-3 of the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference standings this past season. Bluffton entered 2016-17 conference play coming off of a shared HCAC title with Rose-Hulman and the conference tournament crown, while Transylvania came into a new conference season off a third-place finish in HCAC regular season play.

The two teams with high aspirations struggled to find the bucket off the tip. Transylvania required over four minutes before finding paydirt, a three-pointer from Celia Kline. Fortunately, the Pioneers' defense remained steadfast, holding Bluffton to just four points over that stretch.

Sophomore point guard Kristen Hayes continued her resurgence from a knee injury last season with two straight scores, a jumper and a pair of free throws to give Transy its first lead of the game at 7-6 with 3:30 remaining in the first half.

Freshman guard Shelby Boyle rained down a 3-pointer for a 10-6 Transylvania advantage. Bluffton then responded with a 9-0 run to end the first quarter with a 15-10 lead.

The scoring picked up in the second quarter for both sides. Bluffton got to the free-throw line 10 times in the quarter to aid its cause, while Transy leaned on a triple from both Hayes and sophomore guard Macey Ford to stay within reach of the Beavers. Bluffton embarked on a 10-0 run down the stretch before sophomore guard Taylor Jackson hit five free throws within the final 48 seconds of the half to cut Bluffton's halftime lead to 37-27.  

In the second half, Bluffton took defensive control of matters, outscoring the Pioneers 30-17 for the final tally. The Pioneers outshot Bluffton from outside, knocking down five triples to just one for the Beavers. But Bluffton made up for that difference in the paint, outrebounding the Pioneers 40 to 24 and notching a flurry of close range shots.

Hayes hit her season-high with 13 points off the bench to go with three rebounds and one assist. Jackson added nine points and two steals in the defeat.

While both teams struggled from the field, each squad made up the difference at the free-throw line. Bluffton was a perfect 18-for-18 from the charity stripe, while Transylvania nearly equaled that effort, shooting 17-for-19 from the foul line.

The Pioneers next look ahead to a Wednesday night home battle with conference foe Hanover at the Beck Center. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.

For more on Transylvania women's basketball, follow their official twitter @TUWBX