IRVING, Texas - The Austin College women's basketball team got off to a slow start offensively and was unable to recover, falling 56-41 on Tuesday evening at the University of Dallas.

Austin College managed just seven points in the first quarter and seven more in the second, heading into halftime trailing the Crusaders 25-14. The 'Roos had led 11-10 early in the second quarter, but Dallas finished the half with a 15-3 run and carried that momentum over into the third, pushing the margin to 42-22 heading into the fourth quarter.

The 'Roos managed to close the gap to 44-35 on a three from Sarah Gwin midway through the fourth, but the Crusaders answered with six straight points to make it 50-35 and Austin College couldn't mount a comeback in the final minutes of the game. Austin College finished the game hitting just 24.6% from the field and made only 1-of-15 three point attempts, and Dallas owned a 49-38 advantage on the backboards.

Sarah Putnicki had 13 points and five assists to lead Austin College, and Gwin finished with 11 points and six rebounds in the loss. Kaylee Lewis chipped in seven points off the bench. Ashley Hall came off the bench to lead all scorers with 17 points for Dallas.