AIKEN, S.C. – Zenia Palaska hit a free throw with under five seconds to play and a strong defensive stand on the last possession guided the USCA women's basketball team to a 55-52 victory over Tusculum Saturday afternoon.

The Pacers are now 3-8 on the season.

Head coach Brittany Batts' team was led by Makaylei Snyder's game-high 13 points. Ioanna Stefanaki contributed 12 points. Mackenna Nix, Morgan McDermott and Monique Emelifeonwu had six points apiece. Nika Kurdija and Palaska notched five points while Riley Miller chipped in two.

Emelifeonwu grabbed a team-best 12 rebounds and swatted a game-high four shots. She also shared game-high accolades with three steals.

Trailing 20-9 entering the second quarter, USCA had a tremendous stanza. The Pacers held an 18-6 edge in points en route to a 27-26 halftime advantage. During the second frame, Nix started the scoring with a pair of charity tosses. Snyder found McDermott for a three-ball, slicing the deficit to six, 20-14. Facing a 24-14 deficit, Snyder canned a three-point bucket. After Snyder hit a free throw, Palaska nailed a jumper off a pass from Miller. Stefanaki converted a three-ball before Miller made a lay-up. A pair of Kurdija free throws pushed the margin to 27-24 before the Pioneers finished the scoring with a lay-up, making it a one-point game at the break.

In the second quarter, USCA limited the visitors to a pair of field goals in the first two minutes before embarking on a 13-0 run that spanned just over seven minutes.

Leading 40-34 heading into the final 10 minutes of action, Kurdija started the scoring with a three-ball off a pass from McDermott. Up 43-36, Snyder connected on a field goal. Holding a 47-42 edge, Kurdija found Stefanaki for a three-point bucket at the 1:51 mark. Up 50-45, Nix hit a free throw. Maintaining a 52-50 lead with 19 seconds to go, Emelifeonwu made a pair of free throws.

After the Pioneers scored with five seconds to play, Palaska was fouled. She hit the first one but missed the second. Tusculum managed to get the ball into the frontcourt, but the Pacers forced a miss on the final shot of the game.

For the game, the USCA hit 16-of-58 from the floor, including seven-of-27 from downtown. The squad connected on 16-of-27 from the charity stripe. Batt's team grabbed 39 rebounds, including 21 on the offensive glass, which led to 14 second-chance points. USCA forced 22 turnovers and converted them into 21 points.

The Pacers return to action Dec. 31 when they play at Barton at 2 p.m. Live stats and video will be available at PacerSports.com.