Lady Pacers Hand AASU First PBC Loss, 64-60

SAVANNAH, Ga. - USC Aiken erased a seven-point halftime deficit and picked up its first Peach Belt Conference women's basketball victory of the season with a 64-60 win over host Armstrong Atlantic State on Saturday afternoon at Alumni Arena.

The Lady Pacers (6-7, 1-3 PBC) also halted a three-game slide with the victory, while handing the Lady Pirates (5-6, 2-1 PBC) their first league loss of the season as well.

A balanced scoring effort by the Lady Pirates gave AASU the 35-28 halftime lead as six different players scored between five and seven points in the first half, led by seven apiece from senior Dartayvia Thomas and sophomore Brooke Long.

In the second half, however, the Lady Pacers turned up the offensive pressure behind Catherine Cain, who hit for a game-high 22 points on 7-of-9 shooting from the floor and a perfect 7-of-7 from the free throw line. Deandra Schirmer chipped in 11 points and eight rebounds, while Kendra Chandler also added 10 points and eight rebounds.

The Lady Pirates shot just 32 percent after halftime and made just 3-of-12 three-pointers after intermission. Senior Portia Jones led AASU with 15 points and junior Arpine Amirkhanyan added 14 points to go with eight rebounds on the day.

AASU returns to action on Wednesday, January 13, hosting Augusta State in a Peach Belt Conference contest at 5:30 p.m. at Alumni Arena.