AIKEN, S.C. - The University of South Carolina Aiken baseball team garnered an 11-5 victory over No. 25 Armstrong State in the Peach Belt Conference opener for both teams.

The Pacers are now 4-1 overall and 1-0 against conference competition. The Pirates are 4-2 on the year and 0-1 against league foes.

Head coach Kenny Thomas' team got things going in the bottom of the first frame. Skylar Mercado reached on an error and promptly moved to second on an error by the pitcher. Brian Parreira singled to right field, allowing Mercado to advance to third. Zach Moon's sacrifice fly allowed Mercado to cross home for the 1-0 edge.

USC Aiken tacked on a run in the second. Tyler Ammerman walked with one down and moved to second on Nile Goings' single to right field. A wild pitch pushed both runners up a base and Mitchell Price's groundout made it 2-0.

Armstrong State tied it in the fourth, but the Pacers quickly countered with three runs, taking a lead they would not relinquish.

Max Schoen doubled to left center field and was plated on Price's single. After a walk to Mercado, Parreira was hit by a pitch, scoring another run. Price managed to scoot home on a wild pitch for a 5-2 edge.

The Pirates countered with two runs in the fifth, but USC Aiken got back on the board in its turn at bat. Ammerman doubled home Jonathan Banks for a 6-4 advantage.

The Pacers registered three runs in the sixth to break open the contest. Banks and Schoen each singled in a run. Then, with the bases full of USC Aiken student-athletes, Ammerman drew a walk for a 9-4 margin.

Armstrong State tried to get back into the game, but only crossed home plate once in the seventh inning, making it a 9-5 game.

In the bottom of the eighth, Ammerman blasted his first round-tripper of his USC Aiken career, which was a two-run shot. Ammerman's homer pushed the score to 11-5 heading into the ninth.

For the game, Thomas' team pounded out 11 runs on 13 hits.

Ammerman, Goings, Parreira and Schoen all had two hits apiece to lead the way. Ammerman pounded out four RBI while Price tallied two in the win.

Joe Marlow picked up his first victory of the season after coming in as a reliever in the fifth frame. He threw 2.2 innings of relief, striking out two and did not give up an earned run. Brooks Calvo got the start, going 4.1 innings. He struck out four and gave up three earned runs on seven hits. Cole Lee and Nick Jobst each worked a perfect frame. Lee struck out one while Jobst sent two back to the dugout.

The win snapped a five-game losing skid against the Pirates. USC Aiken pulled within one game of tying Armstrong State in the all-time series with the victory.

The Pacers return to action ‪tomorrow when they host the Pirates in a doubleheader starting ‪at 1 p.m. Live stats, video and audio will be available at ‪PacerSports.com.