AUGUSTA, Ga. – A pair of late 3-pointers and some clutch free-throw shooting down the stretch lifted USC Aiken to a hard-fought 60-55 victory over GRU Augusta at Christenberry Fieldhouse Wednesday night in Peach Belt Conference action.

Down one with just over three to play, J Ashby hit two free throws to put the Jags on top. But Portia Martin's layup with a drawn foul put the Pacers up, and Courtney Mealing's three the next time down the court sealed it for the visiting team.

With the defeat, the Jaguars dropped to 9-16 overall and 5-13 in Peach Belt Conference play. The Pacers, winners of three of their last four contests, improved to 10-17 and 8-10 in the conference.The Pacers raced to leads of 13-3 and 20-12 before back-to-back layups by Kelsey Fynaardt helped the Jags close the first half down just two.

USC Aiken stretched the lead to 35-27 after a trey from Amaura Brandt, but the Jaguars struck back with a 16-0 run. Ashby started things with a jumper, followed by back-to-back Becky Newhouse fast-break lay-ins off of Tavia Sykes' steal. Marissa Mandeldove blasted through traffic for a lay-in to give the Jags their first lead of the night at 36-35, and Ashby hit two free throws before the run was capped by a Mandeldove 3-pointer,  giving GRU a 43-35 lead with 9:16 remaining in the game before the Pacers battled back.

Ashby led the way with 15 points and four board for the Jaguars, and Mandeldove chipped in 11 points and four assists. Martin led all scorers with 16 points and added nine rebounds as four Pacers hit double-figure points.

GRU wraps up its regular season on Saturday when it plays host to Flagler on Senior Day at 1:30 p.m. The game will mark the final contest at Christenberry Fieldhouse for the Jaguars' Ashby, Brooke McCants, Becky Newhouse, Dericka Griffis, and Jac' Weathers.