AIKEN, S.C. – The University of South Carolina Aiken baseball team plated a pair of runs in the bottom of the ninth inning en route to a 4-3 victory over Flagler in the first game of the series Saturday afternoon.

The Pacers improve to 32-13 on the season and 17-11 against conference competition.

TJ Costen led the team with three hits while Randy Luckett, Sean Miller and Tyler Moore all had two hits. Miller drove in a game-high two RBI while Costen added one. Ty Barkell, Costen, Miller and Moore all scored a run in the victory.

On the mound, James Lynch picked up the victory after throwing two-thirds of an inning. He struck out one and allowed one hit en route to his third win of the season.

Forrest Koumas started the game for head coach Kenny Thomas and he went 6.1 innings but did not get the decision. He gave up two runs on nine hits but struck out a pair. Erik Davis worked two-thirds of an inning while Joe Marlow tossed 1.1 innings in the game.

Koumas got out of a jam in the top of the first, striking out Shawn Hendon to end the frame after two runners got on base.

In the bottom of the second, Costen singled and swiped second with two down. He came around to score on Miller's base knock to left center field for a 1-0 lead.

The score remained the same until the fifth. The Saints struck for a lead-off homer in the fifth and sixth innings, taking a 2-1 lead. However, Thomas' team continued to battle back.

In the bottom of the eighth, Miller led off the stanza with a deep blast over the left center field wall, knotting the contest at 2-2. 

The Saints struck back with a run in the top of the ninth via a wild pitch. However, USC Aiken continued to apply pressure.

Flagler switched pitchers heading into the bottom of the ninth and the Pacers took advantage. Moore led off the inning with a frozen rope to left field. After being held closely to the bag, Moore saw his opening and took off for second, sliding in safely. However, an errant throw by the catcher allowed Moore to scamper all the way to third base with nobody out.

With one down, Barkell struck out swinging, but managed to reach on a wild pitch. The errant pitch allowed Moore to score, tying the contest at 3-3. Zach Moon singled to center field, allowing Barkell to get to second base. He moved to third on a wild pitch before Costen's single down the left field line scored him for the game-winning run.

The Pacers return to action tomorrow when they host the Saints in a doubleheader starting at 12 p.m.