FLORENCE, S.C. – The University of South Carolina Aiken volleyball team picked up a hard fought 3-1 victory at Francis Marion Tuesday evening in a Peach Belt Conference contest.

The Pacers improve to 21-3 on the year, including a 10-2 mark against conference competition. The Patriots fall to 11-10on the year and 5-7 against league foes.

Julia Forster narrowly missed a double-double while Shawn Hotson garnered a double-double performance. Forster tallied a match-high 18 kills to go along with nine digs while Hotson posted 12 kills and 17 digs. The performance propelled Hotson into ninth place on the school's career dig. Christine Carroll added 10 kills. Amber Hendry and Kassy Johannsen tallied six kills apiece.

Emily Teelon distributed a match-high 45 assists and came close to a triple-double with nine digs and nine kills.

Defensively, Danielle Mercer led everyone with 29 digs. 

After dropping the first set 25-18, head coach Glenn Cox motivated his team prior to the second stanza. The Pacers played inspired ball, taking a 9-4 lead thanks in part to numerous errors by the home squad. However, the Patriots battled back and knotted the score at 18-18. The teams continued to trade points. Teelon's kill gave USC Aiken a 24-23 lead, but FMU tied it. Hendry and Johannsen combined for a block, but the Patriots knotted the score at 25-25. However, Hotson took back-to-back passes and tied the match at one set apiece.

Trailing 7-4 in the third stanza, Hendry slammed home a pass from Teelon, sparking a 6-0 run. During the spurt, Carroll stuffed a shot and had a kill. Hotson and Teelon also notched points during the run. Holding an 11-10 lead, Hotson, Forster and Teelon posted back-to-back-to-back kills prior to Mercer serving up an ace. Johannsen's point pushed the margin to 16-10. The Pacers managed to maintain a five-point lead before Carroll, Forster and Teelon made it 24-16. Carroll closed the door with a kill and a 25-18 victory.

USC Aiken held a 12-10 lead in the fourth set before a 5-0 run put the contest out of reach. During the spurt, Hotson and Forster each had kills. Teelon served up two aces and Cox's team cruised to the win. 

The Pacers return to action Thursday when they host Lander at 7 p.m. Live stats and video will be available at PacerSports.com.