RACINE, Ohio — A slow start sealed Southern’s fate Saturday night.

The Tornadoes managed just three points in the opening quarter of a 48-59 loss to visiting Nelsonville-York at Charles W. Hayman Gymnasium.

The Buckeyes (14-5) out scored Southern (9-11) 11-to-3 in the opening period Saturday night. The Tornado offense got things going in the second quarter scoring 16 points, but NYHS scored 18 in the period and took the 29-19 halftime advantage.

The Buckeyes added three to their lead in the third period, out scoring Southern 17-to-14. SHS rallied for 15 points in the finale but the Brown and Orange scored 13 to seal the 59-48 victory.

Tristen Wolfe paced the Tornadoes with 16 points in the game, followed by Taylor McNickle and Casey Pickens with seven each. Hunter Johnson and Zac Beegle both marked five points, Chandler Drummer had four, while Trenton Deem and Dennis Teaford rounded out the SHS total with two points apiece.

Pickens led the Purple and Gold on the glass with nine rebounds, followed by Wolfe with seven. Wolfe and McNickle each had four assists to lead Southern, while Wolfe and Deem led the defense with two steals each.

As a unit the Tornadoes had 33 rebounds, 13 assists, seven steals and 30 turnovers. Southern shot 11-of-21 (52.4 percent) from the line and 18-of-41 (43.9 percent) from the field. SHS was just 1-of-7 (14.3 percent) from beyond the arc with the lone triple coming from Wolfe.

Nelsonville-York was led by Marc Carter and Clint Handa with 14 points each, followed by Jacob Blake with 12. Colt Adams marked seven points, Jay Elliott added five, Cody Walker contributed three, while Emmit Reed and Josh Fayette each marked two.

Handa had nine rebounds to lead the victors, while Joey Young’s four assists led the Buckeyes. As a team NYHS had 26 rebounds, 15 assists, 16 steals, two blocks and 15 turnovers. The Buckeyes shot 23-of-51 (45.1 percent) from the field, including 6-of-22 (27.3 percent) from three point range. NYHS was 7-of-18 from the line for 38.9 percent.

Southern falls to 0-2 against TVC Ohio opponents this season, while NYHS is 6-0 against the TVC Hocking.