Ulster new boy Schifcofske went on to reduce the half-time gap to just a point when he converted two out of four penalties as indiscipline crept into the Scarlets play.
Halfpenny had a chance just before half-time to narrow the gap but the penalty chance from his own 10-metre line asked too much from even the wing's powerful boot.
Both teams were playing with real ambition and when Cipriani landed a penalty either side of half-time to cut the gap to six points it looked as though a cliff-hanger was in the works.