COLUMBUS, Ga. – The University of South Carolina Aiken women's basketball team lost a hard-fought game at Columbus State by a score of 70-56.

The Pacers are now 5-2 on the season and 2-1 in league play. The Cougars improve to 4-1 overall and 1-1 against conference foes.

Head coach Mark Miller's team was led by Kyrie' Chandler and Melyk Taouil as both netted 12 points in the loss. Madeline Sexton accounted for nine points while Grace Crawford totaled eight points.

Alex Canady and Janae' Simpson had five points apiece. Kwajelin Farrar blocked a game-high four shots.

In the first quarter, Sexton's jumper pushed the lead to 9-5 at the 5:51 mark. Taouil's lay-up upped the margin to four at 11-7 with 3:36 to go in the period. Tied at 11 with under a minute to go, Crawford buried a jumper, giving the lead back to the visitors. Sade Johnson extended the advantage to three on a charity toss heading into the second stanza.

Down 26-22, Simpson hit a free throw with 2:39 to go before halftime. Taouil buried a pair of free throws with just under two minutes to play, pulling the squad within one. Taouil found Simpson for a three-ball, knotting the score at 28-28. However, the Cougars managed to hold a 31-28 advantage heading into intermission.

Taouil knotted the contest at 37-37 with 6:09 to go in the third quarter on a deep three-point shot. Moments later, USC Aiken extended the lead to 44-40 on a three-point shot from Crawford. Chandler pushed the advantage to 46-40 before Crawford hit another shot from downtown for a 49-40 lead with 2:05 to go in the frame. The Pacers held a 52-45 advantage going into the fourth stanza.

The Cougars cut into the advantage in the fourth, but Sexton's fast break bucket made it 56-50 with 6:57 to play. However, the home squad managed to secure the victory.

For the game, USC Aiken hit 19-of-54 from the floor (35.2 percent), including six-of-20 from downtown (30.0 percent). Miller's team held a commanding 49-38 edge on the glass.

The Pacers return to action Saturday when they play at Winston-Salem State at 2 p.m. Live stats and video will be available at PacerSports.com.