USC Aiken Falls To Carson-Newman In Season-Opening Contest

GREENWOOD, S.C. – The University of South Carolina Aiken women's basketball team lost a 67-63 decision to Carson-Newman Friday evening in the team's season-opening game, which was played at Lander.

Head coach Mike Brandt's team was led by junior Alexis Ware, who poured in a career-high 17 points. She drained four-of-eight from the floor, including two-of-four from downtown. She also canned seven-of-10 from the charity stripe.

Kassy Johannsen netted 12 points on six-of-eight shooting. She also swatted three shots. Kate Duff and Emry Tsitouris each added nine points. Duff snagged a team-high seven rebounds while Tsitouris accounted for six.

Stephanie Ball dished out a team-best six assists and tallied two of the team's six steals.

Newcomer Baylea Loven totaled six points and grabbed five rebounds in 12 minutes of action.

The Eagles held a slight advantage in field goal percentage, hitting 23-of-56 for 41.1 percent, while the Pacers canned 23-of-58 for 39.7 percent shooting. USC Aiken corralled 45 rebounds compared to 34 by Carson-Newman.

Brandt's squad dished out 19 assists on the 23 field goals. However, the team committed 16 turnovers compared to 12 by the Eagles. The designated visitors accounted for 15 points off turnovers while the Pacers had just 10.

USC Aiken took a 6-5 lead on Duff's jumper at the 6:43 mark in the first quarter. Trailing 10-6, Tsitouris drained a jumper off a pass from Ball. Loven tied the contest at 10-10 on a shot with 4:17 to go in the quarter. Rachelle Aupont gave the team a 13-10 advantage with 3:23 to go in the quarter. Ware hit a pair of free throws for a 15-10 lead. With 21 seconds to play in the quarter, Duff converted a three-point play for a 20-14 margin.

The second period was extremely tight and the Eagles took a two-point edge at the 3:57 mark. However, Ware knotted the game with a bucket at the 3:09 mark before intermission. USC Aiken continued hitting free throws down the stretch, taking a 36-35 lead into the second half.

After Carson-Newman took a 50-45 lead heading into the fourth frame, Brandt's team pulled within three just 34 seconds into it off a basket by Tsitouris.

The Eagles reeled off 10 of the next 12 points for a 60-49 margin. However, the Pacers continued to push forward. Johannsen nailed back-to-back baskets, making it 63-54. Ball's lay-up after her steal cut the deficit to seven at 63-56.

Trailing 65-56, Ware drained back-to-back three-point baskets, making it 65-62 with 1:38 to play. However, the Eagles managed to hang on for the four-point victory.  

The Pacers return to action tomorrow when they play Lincoln Memorial at 1 p.m. The game will be played at Lander. Live stats and video will be available at PacerSports.com.