Box Score FLORENCE, S.C. – The University of South Carolina Aiken men's soccer team lost a 4-2 decision at Francis Marion Wednesday evening.
The Pacers are now 4-4-3 on the season, including a 1-3-1 mark against league foes.
After trailing 1-0 at the break, head coach Ike Ofoje's team came out of the intermission and quickly tied the contest.
Sandre Duncan flicked the ball to Nathan Shanko, who one-timed into the back of the net, knotting the contest at 1-1 just 55 seconds into the final period of play.
Two minutes later, Dean Smith fired off a shot from 35 yards out that found the back of the goal for his first career tally. The shot gave the Pacers a 2-1 edge.
However, FMU tied the contest at the 54:02 mark.
The Pacers thwarted a pair of attempts by the home team before earning a corner kick in the 61st minute. However, the team was unable to get a shot off at that point. The Patriots pushed forward and netted a score in the 68th minute of play.
After another goal pushed the score to a 4-2 margin, Jarrel Smalls tried to get the team back in the contest, but his shot from the top of the box was saved in the 78th minute. Forty seconds later, Andre Simmond registered a shot on goal, but it was also stopped. It marked the last shot attempt of the night for the Pacers.
For the match, USC Aiken recorded 11 shots compared to 16 by the home team. Ofoje's squad tallied five corner kicks.
Andre Bernardini played all 90 minutes between the pipes, earning six saves while the team also made one for the match.
Simmond led the team with three shots, including two on frame. Smalls and Smith each had a pair of shots in the contest.
The Pacers return to the pitch Friday when they host Clayton State. The match is slated to start at 7:30 p.m. Live stats, video and audio will be available at PacerSports.com.
