AIKEN, S.C. – The University of South Carolina Aiken softball team lost a pair of one-run games to visiting Lander Wednesday evening by scores of 2-1 and 7-6 in eight innings.

The Pacers are now 18-8 overall, including a 4-2 mark against league foes. The Bearcats are 17-11 on the year and 4-4 against conference competition.

In the opener, USC Aiken threatened in the second inning as Andrea Daring led off with a walk. Taylor Allen came in as a pinch runner and moved to second when Sarah Timmerman dropped a bloop single down the left field line.

With two down, Sarah Montei walked to load the bases. However, a hard groundout back to the pitcher ended the stanza.

Lander took the lead with a solo blast. The Bearcats added a run in the sixth, but head coach Jerry Snyder's team fought back in the bottom of the seventh.

With one down, Montei singled through the left side and swiped second. After moving to third on a wild pitch, Sydney Murphy was walked to put runners on first and third. Samantha Chubb lifted a sacrifice fly to right field, plating Montei. Hannah Price hit a ball off the end of her bat that the second baseman made an acrobatic catch to end the game.

For the contest, Chubb ripped three hits, including a pair of doubles. She drove in the team's lone run while Montei scored the run.

In the circle, Taylor Morgan was saddled with the loss despite striking out nine and scattering two runs on six hits.

USC Aiken went to work in the bottom of the first of the nightcap by taking a 3-0 lead. Montei led off the inning with an infield single. Murphy laid down a sacrifice bunt, but a fielding error allowed runners to be on first and third. Chubb blasted a double to right field, scoring Montei while Murphy went to third. Price doubled home two runs for the 3-0 advantage.

Lander cut the deficit to 3-2 with a pair of runs in the second, but Snyder's squad got a run back.

Leah Boghosian beat out an infield bunt for a hit and moved to second on Montei's bunt single. With two down, Price laced a single to left, plating Boghosian to make it 4-2.

The Pacers pushed the score to 5-2 when Julianne Leduc registered a bunt single that allowed Samantha Peka to score. Peka had come in as a pinch runner for Magan Thrower, who had opened the stanza with a double down the left field line.

The Bearcats added a pair of runs in the fourth, but USC Aiken fought back. Thrower singled home Price, who got on base with a two-out double. However, it marked the final run for the Pacers.

Lander added two runs in the seventh to tie the game at 6-6 and managed to eek out a run in the eighth for what turned out to be the game-winning run.

For the game, Price led the team with three hits and three RBI. Montei and Thrower each collected a pair of hits. Chubb, Leduc and Thrower all had one RBI apiece.

Chandler Terrapin started in the circle and went four innings, giving up four runs on seven hits, but only two runs were earned. Morgan hurled the final four frames, striking out two but picked up the loss.

The Pacers return to action next week when they travel to Erskine in a non-conference doubleheader slated for Tuesday starting at 2 p.m.