HARROGATE, Tenn. – The University of South Carolina Aiken women's basketball team opened the season with a hard fought 84-78 loss to Carson-Newman Friday evening.
Head coach
Mark Miller's team was led by redshirt-sophomore
Jasmine Carter's game-high 30 points and 11 rebounds.
Kwajelin Farrar was the only other Pacer in double figures, tallying 11 markers.
Emry Tsitouris narrowly missed a double-double with nine points and eight rebounds.
Kate Duff contributed nine points while
Alexis Ware tallied eight. Ware also dished out a team-best five assists in the contest.
Emily Waters tallied six points in her collegiate debut.
For the game, USC Aiken hit 28-of-65 from the floor for 43.1 percent. The team buried seven-of-15 from downtown (46.7 percent) and hit 15-of-19 from the charity stripe (78.9 percent).
Leading 14-13 in the opening frame, Miller's team embarked on a 7-0 run to finish the period. Duff buried a three-ball and Carter hit a pair of free throws. Tsitouris ended the spurt with a lay-up for a 21-13 advantage.
The squad maintained a nine-point edge midway through the second half, but the Eagles went on a 7-0 run to end the half. At the break, USC Aiken held a 37-35 lead.
With the score tied at 46-46 with 6:32 to play in the third quarter, Miller's squad took control of the stanza. Carter buried a jumper at the 5:29 mark for a two-point edge. Farrar converted an old-fashioned three-point play for a 51-46 lead at the 4:41 mark. Carter hit a pair of free throws with 4:12 to play for a 53-46 advantage. A jumper by Farrar pushed the score to 58-48 with 2:32 on the clock. Heading to the fourth, USC Aiken held a 59-52 lead.
The Eagles tied the contest at 64-64, but the Pacers went on a 5-0 run. Carter hit a jumper and Farrar made a charity toss as did Duff. The teams went back-and-forth, but the designated home team took a 74-73 lead with 2:19 to go. The Eagles stretched the lead to six with 30 seconds to go.
Carly Gilreath hit a three-pointer, but the Eagles hit their foul shots down the stretch, pulling off the six-point win.
The Pacers return to action tomorrow when they take on the host Lincoln Memorial Railsplitters at 4 p.m. Live stats and video will be available at PacerSports.com.
