Box Score FLORENCE, S.C. - The University of South Carolina Aiken women's basketball team dropped its Peach Belt Conference opener 69-65 to 18^th-ranked Francis Marion on Wednesday evening at the Smith University Center.

The loss drops the Pacers to 4-2 overall and 0-1 in PBC action in the 2009-10 season. The nationally-ranked Patriots are now 6-0 on the 2009-10 campaign.

The game opened with neither team really able to pull away in the opening minutes. Francis Marion held a slight two-point 7-5 advantage at the first media time out of the contest at the 14:39 mark of the first half.

Five minutes later things had changed though with the Pacers able to procure a little separation by going on a 12-0 run to take a 17-7 lead with a little over eight minutes left in the first stanza. By the time that Francis Marion was finally to get on the scoreboard once again a couple seconds after the last Pacer bucket of the run, USC Aiken had managed to hold the Patriots scoreless for just over seven minutes.

In total, Francis Marion missed 19 of its 21 shots in the contest due to the constant pressure of the Pacer defense.

The Patriots would place themselves back into the contest by going on a 13-3 run of their own over the next five minutes to cut the Pacer lead to just four points at 24-20 with 3:20 left in the first half of play.

The Pacers would enter intermission with the same four-point advantage at 29-25.

Hannah DeGraffinreed (Raleigh, N.C./Merrimack College) led the Pacers in the first half with 10 points and five rebounds. DeGraffinreed was 5-for-7 from the field in the first half of action.

Nicole Mealing was the catalyst for the Patriot attack in the first half with three 3-pointers for a Francis Marion team-high nine points in the first half.

The two teams would play it close for the inaugural minutes of the second half with USC Aiken adding one more point to its halftime lead to hold a 39-34 lead with five minutes gone in the second half.

Freshman Brittany Bowen (Ellicot City, Md./Mt. Hebron) knocked a three-pointer from the left corner with 10:20 left in regulation to place the Pacers on top in the contest by seven points at 46-39.

The Patriots scored 11 of the next 15 points in the contest to leave the game tied at 50-50 with under six minutes remaining.

The Patriots would take the lead at 56-54, but after a Nakia Pinkney (Orangeburg, S.C./Organgeburg-Wilkinson) free throw the Pacers were behind just one at 58-57 with under four minutes left in the game.

A minute and a half later, Triahna Harris (Springfield, Va./West Springfield) had given the Pacers the lead once again at 61-60.

DeGraffinreed hit a driving lay-up with 24 seconds on the clock to give the Pacers a 65-64 lead, but Francis Marion's Shannon Singleton-Bates hit a fast break lay-up five seconds later. She was fouled on the play and then knocked down the free throw to give FMU a 67-65 advantage with little time left on the clock.

???????DeGraffinreed had a chance to tie the game for the Pacers a few seconds later, but her lay-up just rimmed off to leave the Pacers behind two with six seconds left.

The Patriots were able to get the basketball in bounds, leaving Harris to foul with 4.5 seconds left.

Robin Colbert was then able to put in both of the free throws for Francis Marion to give the Patriots the four-point 69-65 victory.

Four Pacers concluded the game in double figures with DeGraffinreed leading the way with 16 points. She had three blocks in the game.

???????Pinkney ended her evening with 13 points, while Harris ended the contest with 12 points and six assists.

Catherine Cain (Dayton, Ohio/Ohio University) ended the game with 10 points and six rebounds.

USC Aiken's Deandra Schirmer (Holton, Kan./Cloud County) finished with a game-high 10 rebounds to go along with her six points.
Shana Franks was the leading scorer on the evening for Francis Marion with 14 points. She was one of four in double figures as Mealing (12), Singleton-Bates (11) and Colbert (10) all scoring in double figures.

???????The Pacers will next close out their week by traveling to Rock Hill, S.C. to take on NCAA Division I Winthrop at 4 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 5. The Pacers are 3-3 against NCAA Division I foes under head coach Mike Brandt. USC Aiken is 3-1 against NCAA Division I competition during the regular season over the last three years.