FLORENCE, S.C. – The University of South Carolina Aiken volleyball team overcame a 2-0 deficit to rattle off a 3-2 victory Friday evening at Francis Marion in a league contest.

The Pacers are now 15-3 overall and 5-1 in league play. The Patriots stand at 11-11 overall and 3-5 against conference foes.

The five-set victory marks the first of that kind for head coach Glenn Cox's team since a 3-2 win at Augusta on Nov. 11, 2017.

Christine Carroll led the way with a career and match-high 20 kills. She hit .375 in the win while also blocking five shots. Anita Cookey-Gam earned the start and slammed home a career-best 17 kills while hitting .333. Alie Smith accounted for a double-double with 14 kills and 16 digs.

Ali Kirk dished out a match-best 36 assists while contributing eight digs and three blocks. Alli Bell narrowly missed out on a double-double with 18 assists and nine digs.

Rebecca Martinez totaled a team-high 22 digs while Kayla Duggan and Vannah Strozier added 18 and 15, respectively.

At the net, Okwunne Ogbogu garnered five total blocks while Cookey-Gam chimed in with four. Kirk and Smith had three each.

After dropping the first two sets 25-20 and 25-21, Cox's squad regrouped prior to the third frame. Tied at 16-16 in the third set, Avery Macklin slammed home a pass from Bell for a one-point lead. A miscue by the Patriots and kills from Macklin and Carroll pushed the score to 20-17. Leading 23-21, Cookey-Gam threw down a pass from Kirk before Cookey-Gam and Ogbogu stuffed an attempt for the 25-21 victory.

USC Aiken trailed the fourth set 16-15 before reeling off five straight points for a 20-16 edge. Holding a 20-19 margin, Smith pushed the advantage to two, 21-19. She added another kill before Duggan served up an ace. After a time-out, Carroll got in on the action with a kill. Looking at forcing a fifth set, Carroll and Kirk put up a huge double block for the six-point victory.

USC Aiken started out strong in the fifth set, taking a 6-1 lead after back-to-back kills from Cookey-Gam.  Holding a 6-2 lead, Carroll and Cookey-Gam registered kills, forcing a time-out by the home squad. The Patriots pulled within three at 10-7, but an attack error gave the Pacers a four-point cushion.

Leading 11-8, Smith found the court for a point. After trading the next two points, Smith and Carroll finished the comeback with back-to-back kills.

The Pacers return to action Saturday when they play at UNC Pembroke at 1 p.m. Live stats and video will be available at PacerSports.com.