AIKEN, S.C. – The University of South Carolina Aiken baseball team lost a 12-5 decision to Lenoir-Rhyne Tuesday evening.

The Pacers are now 17-20 overall while the Bears improve to 35-7.

The Bears managed to plate a pair of runs in the second for a 2-0 edge. USC Aiken trimmed the deficit to one in the bottom of the stanza. Carson Suess led off the inning with a walk and moved to second on a base knock from Scott Huntley. A groundout pushed both runners up one base. Sean McQuillan's groundout plated Suess, making it 2-1.

L-R extended the lead to five with a grand slam in the fifth. However, the Pacers trimmed the deficit in the bottom of the frame. Jackson Hannon's single through the right side of the infield plated Suess. Two batters later, Jeff Cyr's groundout allowed Hannon to race home, cutting the margin to three at 6-3.  

Trailing 8-3 in the seventh, Hannon belted a triple and scored on a groundout by McQuillan, pulling the home squad within four at 8-4. L-R tacked on a run in the eighth to make it 9-4. A three-run homer in the ninth pushed the score to 12-4.

Joseph Mozingo drove in Marcus Mastellone in the ninth for the final tally.

Louie Smith got the start on the mound and had a strikeout. Peyton Boozer tallied three strikeouts while Austin Hohm had two strikeouts. Hunter Steger also registered a strikeout. Austin Sandifer, Matt Garcia, Dylan Wilhelm and Bryce Bulls also saw time on the mound.

At the plate, Hannon totaled two hits, including a triple. He garnered one RBI and scored twice. McQuillan drove in two while Suess crossed home twice. Blankenship's lone hit of the night was a triple.

The Pacers return to action Thursday when they play at Young Harris at 6 p.m. Live stats and video will be available at PacerSports.com.