PEMBROKE, N.C. – The University of South Carolina Aiken volleyball team netted a 3-0 victory at UNC Pembroke in the Peach Belt Conference opener for both teams.

The Pacers improve to 8-0 on the season, including a 1-0 mark against league foes.

Leading the way for USC Aiken was Ashley Diedrich, who posted a match-best 14 kills and a match-high 14 digs while hitting .273.

Alicia Hines accounted for eight kills while Julia Forster and Taylor Stratton each slammed home seven kills. Emily Teelon posted a double-double with 24 assists and 11 digs.

Monica Cardona totaled 12 digs to go along with her three aces. Stratton and Katie Toman had eight digs apiece.  

In the first set, head coach Glenn Cox's team trailed in the early going, but the squad managed to fight its way back. Down 4-2, USC Aiken picked up a point on a service error. An attack error by the home team knotted the contest at 4-4. Diedrich confused the defense by slicing through the six players for an ace prior to Forster's kill for a 6-4 advantage.

With the score tied at 14, a miscue by the Braves gave the Pacers a one-point edge. Cardona registered an ace for a two-point edge. Forster's kill pushed the margin to three at 18-15, but USC Aiken saw its advantage trimmed to two at 23-21. Hines gave Cox's squad a 24-21 lead prior to an attack error by Caroline Pridgen for the 25-21 win for the Pacers.

Diedrich posted seven kills and seven digs in the opening frame.

The Pacers trailed 8-6 in the early part of the second stanza. However, three straight attack errors by the Braves gave the visitors a 9-8 lead. Tied at 11-11, USC Aiken embarked on a 9-1 run thanks in part to a pair of miscues by UNC Pembroke. Stratton's slam pushed the lead to 14-12. Hines and Forster tallied back-to-back kills and an attack error by the Braves forced a time-out with USC Aiken leading 17-12.

Diedrich and Hines combined for a block after the brief intermission. Cardona dished out a pair of assists to Diedrich before the final point of the Pacers' run was due to a ball handling error on the home team.

A few moments later, Forster's kill from Emily Teelon wrapped up the set in fine fashion for USC Aiken with the 25-18 win.

In what turned out to be the final set, USC Aiken hit .289 while holding the Braves to a .000 attack percentage.

USC Aiken jumped out to a 3-0 advantage, but the home team tied it at 3-3. The squads went back-and-forth until a point by the Braves made it a 12-9 set in favor of the Pacers. Stratton's kill started an 11-0 run that put the set and match away.

During the spurt, Hines and Stratton each added a pair of kills while Diedrich hammered home three points.

The last point of the run came via Lauren Howard's service ace. With the score at 24-11 after another kill by Diedrich, Danielle Mercer promptly ended the match with an ace.

The Pacers return to action tomorrow when they play at Francis Marion at 2 p.m. Live stats are available on PacerSports.com, but no video is available.