FLORENCE, S.C. – The University of South Carolina Aiken women's basketball team lost a 69-57 decision at Francis Marion Wednesday evening.

The Pacers are now 12-9 on the season and 7-6 in league play.

Head coach Mark Miller's team was led by Alexis Mack's team-high 17 points on seven-of-15 shooting from the floor. Alex Canady added 13 points and eight boards.

Kwajelin Farrar tallied eight points while Madison Williams contributed seven points to go along with six rebounds. Melyk Taouil snagged a game-high 10 rebounds in the contest.

In the first quarter, Farrar gave the visitors a 9-8 edge off a pass from Taouil. Trailing 15-11, Canady nailed a three-ball, but the Patriots quickly countered with a basket. Williams found Mack for a shot from downtown, knotting the contest at 17-17. Mack's lay-up gave the Pacers a 19-17 edge but FMU took a 22-20 lead into the second frame.

The Patriots managed to hold a 36-29 advantage at the break, but USC Aiken quickly battled back. Canady found Farrar for a jumper just 14 seconds into the frame, slicing the deficit to five. A Mack lay-up with 5:18 to play in the stanza cut the margin to four at 45-41. Rikoya Anderson's charity toss pulled the Pacers within three, 48-45, with 20 seconds to go. FMU made it 50-45 heading into the fourth quarter.

 The Patriots scored the first four points of the fourth stanza, but Taouil found Mack for a three-point shot to make it 54-48. However, that was as close as USC Aiken could get the rest of the way.

For the game, USC Aiken hit 21-of-55 from the floor (38.2 percent). The squad buried six-of-seven from distance (85.7 percent). Miller's team held a 37-31 edge on the glass. The visitors dished out 14 assists on the 21 field goals.

The Pacers return to action Saturday when they play at Georgia Southwestern. Live stats and video will be available at PacerSports.com.