AIKEN, S.C. – The University of South Carolina Aiken put forth a tremendous effort, but a last-second shot by Francis Marion allowed the visitors to earn a 71-69 victory in the Convocation Center Monday evening in a conference contest.

The Pacers are now 2-8 overall and 0-2 against Peach Belt Conference competition.

The Pacers were led by Porsha Martin's team-high 17 points. She also grabbed a team-high seven boards in the contest. Courtney Mealing accounted for 12 points and five boards while
Kate Duff came off the bench to hit for 12 points, six rebounds and chip in two steals. 

USC Aiken jumped out to a 20-10 advantage at the 8:56 mark after trailing 10-9 with 12:07 to go. Martin nailed a mid-range jumper for an 11-10 lead. Amaura Brandt drained a deep three-point shot from the wing with 11:15 to go for a four-point edge.

Duff's two foul shots pushed the margin to six before Jasmine Coach snagged a rebound and registered a nifty, twisting put-back for an 18-10 lead. Duff's jumper pushed the margin to 20-10.

However, the Patriots sliced the deficit to three with 4:52 to go. Martin increased the lead to five on two foul shots, but the visitors took a 30-29 lead with 2:06 to go. 

Mealing gave the home team a 31-30 lead on two foul shots, but the Patriots pushed the advantage to three at 34-31 before Mealing completed the first-half scoring with two free throws. 

FMU raced out to a 13-point advantage in the second half with 11:49 to go, but head coach Mike Brandt's team fought back. Amaura Brandt drained a three-point shot and Mealing connected on a runner in the lane, pulling the team within eight.

An 8-0 spurt by the Pacers that spanned less than two minutes allowed the home team to tie the contest at 60 with just 4:23 on the clock. 

USC Aiken took a 67-64 lead on a lay-up by Mackenzie Reese with 1:03 to go, but a three by the Patriots and a missed shot by Brandt's team gave the ball back to the visitors with under 30 seconds to play. A baseline runner by FMU allowed the visitors to take the two-point win.

The Pacers return to action Friday at 1:30 p.m., when they host Urbana in a non-conference affair. Live stats, video and audio are available at PacerSports.com.