AIKEN, S.C. – The University of South Carolina Aiken women's soccer team dropped a hard-fought 1-0 decision to Clayton State Saturday afternoon.

The Pacers are now 2-4 on the season, including 1-1 in league play. The Lakers improve to 1-4-1 overall and 1-1 against conference foes.
In the sixth minute, Clayton State took a 1-0 lead off a corner kick. The Lakers managed to head the ball into the back of the frame for the advantage.

Head coach Tina Murphy's team's defense stifled the visitors the rest of the half. Mary Cecil turned away multiple shots and defenders managed to block a pair of attempts as well. Cecil ended the first period with four saves.

In the 68^th minute of play, Marianne Ross took the ball along the right side of the pitch. After crossing up a defender, she blasted a shot from 30 yards out. The keeper managed to jump and get just enough of the ball to keep it from tying the score.

USC Aiken pushed forward a couple more times after that, but the team was unable to register another shot.

The squad played tenacious defense throughout, keeping the Lakers at bay during the second half.

For the match, Cecil played all 90 minutes between the pipes. She finished the contest with seven saves.

The Pacers return to action Wednesday when they play at North Georgia at 7:30 p.m. Live stats and video will be available at PacerSports.com.