COLUMBUS, Ga. – The University of South Carolina Aiken men's tennis team lost a 5-0 contest to Columbus State in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament.

The Pacers conclude their season with a 12-10 mark while the Cougars improve to 18-5.

The teams started off in doubles play and head coach Steve Dahm's squad put together a tough outing, but fell behind by a 3-0 score.

Top-seeded Julien Tan and Mathias Degardin lost an 8-4 contest. Third-seededAlejandro Andino and Hunter Lathropdropped their match by the same score.

Clement Raymond and Jaime Gusano were at the No. 2 spot. The dyad lost their match by an 8-2 count.

Tan lost at No. 1 by a 6-1, 6-1 score while Gusano fell by a 6-0, 6-3 count at the No. 6 slot.

Raymond was close to a win before the match was called. Playing at the No. 3 position, he was ahead 6-3, 5-0. Lathrop also was up in his match. Lathrop, seeing time at No. 4, boasted a 7-5 win in the first set but his contest also was left unfinished as the match was a race to five.

The Pacers lose seniors Andino and Ettore Damiani to graduation, but return the bulk of their line-up for 2017.