FLORENCE, S.C. – The University of South Carolina Aiken volleyball team split its two matches on the first day of the Francis Marion Invitational at the Smith University Center.

Both matches were five-set thrillers with USC Aiken falling 3-2 (20-25, 25-22, 25-23, 15-25, 15-13) to Mount Olive in the first match of the day. The Pacers downed Mars Hill 3-2 (25-23, 25-20, 21-25, 23-25, 15-11) in their second and final match of the day.

USC Aiken will next open the month of September and its second day of the year at 11 a.m. on Saturday, Sept. 1 against Pfeiffer. The Pacers will close out their efforts in the Francis Marion Invitational with a 3 p.m. match against Newberry.

Match One - Mount Olive 3, USC Aiken 2 (20-25, 25-22, 25-23, 15-25, 15-13)

USC Aiken came out strong in its first match of the day, picking up a 25-20 first set victory. Mount Olive would go on to take three of the next four sets to earn a 3-2 win (20-25, 25-22, 25-23, 15-25, 15-13).

Mount Olive (1-1) picked up close victories in the second and third games. Things looked to be turning in the Pacers' favor in the fourth game with the Pacers taking an emphatic 25-15 win in the set to force a decisive fifth game.

In the fifth game, USC Aiken pulled ahead to a 10-8 lead. Mount Olive was undeterred, taking the next four points to own a 12-10 lead. The Pacers would even things in the final set at 13-13, but Mount Olive would claim two straight points to acquire the overall match victory.

Despite taking the loss, USC Aiken dominated almost every statistical category in the match. The Pacers finished the match hitting .233 as a team, while Mount Olive ended its win hitting .168 as a team. The Pacers owned a 7-5 total team block advantage.

Three Pacers finished their efforts with double-digit kills with newcomer Alyssa Johnson (Apple Valley, Minn./Apple Valley HS) leading all Pacers with 15 kills. Johnson hit .500 in her first regular season match as a Pacer.

Shannon Byers (Morristown, Minn./Faribault HS) was just behind Johnson with 14 kills. Byers just missed on a double-double as she also had nine digs.

Hannah Tierney (Winchester, Va./James Wood HS) was the final Pacer with double-digit kills in the match, ending her efforts in the match with 10.

Two Pacers ended the match with double-digit digs with newcomer Danika Maggard (Maize, Kan./Cowley College) ending the match with match-high 18 digs.

Newcomer Ashley Diedrich (Orlando, Fla./Dr. Phillips HS) almost claimed a double-double of her own in the match, claiming 17 digs to go along with nine kills. She also had a match-high tying five service aces.

Sheila Walsh (Fort Mill, S.C./Nation Ford HS) paced the Pacer attack with 35 assists.

Carly White led Mount Olive in its win over USC Aiken with 16 kills.

Match Two – USC Aiken 3, Mars Hill 2 (25-23, 25-20, 21-25, 23-25, 15-11)

USC Aiken looked to be running away with things in its second match of the day, taking its first two sets easily over Mars Hill.

Mars Hill would change the tide of the match in the third set, mounting a come-from-behind rally in the set to garner the third game. They would hold off the Pacers for a 25-23 victory in game four.

USC Aiken pulled away from Mars Hill in the decisive fifth set, claiming a 15-11 win.

The Pacers finished the win over Mars Hill with a .133 hitting percentage as a team. Mars Hill hit .066 as a team in the match. Mars Hill held a slight 12-11 advantage in total team blocks.

Diedrich led all players in the match with 22 kills. She added 10 digs to claim her first double-double as a Pacer.

Johnson was the only other Pacer with double-digit kills in the match, obtaining 10 in the Pacer win.

Walsh once again led the Pacers in assists with 38. She added 14 digs to acquire a double-double.

Five Pacers recorded double-digit digs in total with Samantha Lukralle (Lindenhurst, N.Y./Lindenhurst HS) leading the way with a match-high 29. Claire Patten (Boulder, Colo./Mercer) ended the Pacer win with 15 digs, while Byers had 14 digs.

Toni Cole led Mars Hill in its loss with 17 kills.