ANDERSON, S.C. -- USC Aiken won the battle of the boards and the Trojans were ice-cold from the field in the opening minutes as the Anderson women's basketball team opened a four-game homestand with a 57-48 setback to the visiting Pacers Wednesday night at the Abney Athletic Center. Anderson (0-2) connected on its first two free throws but made just one of its first 11 shots from the field, allowing USC Aiken to jump out to a 13-4 lead inside the first nine minutes of the game. Senior guard Shanice Wilson drained two from the charity stripe less than two minutes into the contest, but AU went nearly five minutes without scoring until freshman Amanda Parris snapped the drought with a layup off an assist from Alexa Neal. With the Pacers holding a 27-9 advantage, Wilson nailed a 3-pointer from the left wing at the 3:47 mark, sparking a 7-0 run by the Trojans. Neal followed with a steal and driving layup and freshman Maci Siniard's two free throws pulled the Trojans within 11 inside two minutes. But USC Aiken's Catherine Cain answered with a trey on the other end and following a basket by AU's Ashley Abed, Cain dropped in another score to set the halftime margin at 32-18. Trailing 38-19 early in the second stanza, the Trojans rallied once again as Neal scored seven unanswered points and AU closed within 12. However, USC Aiken responded with a 14-2 run of their own, pushing out to its biggest lead of the game, at 52-30, with just over seven minutes left on the clock. But AU refused to surrender, as the Trojans staged a furious rally and battled back one final time. Senior Korie Sellers triggered the comeback with an inside jumper and Neal followed with a traditional three-point play. Junior guard Lauren Beeson then got hot, scoring all eight of her points inside the final four minutes. The Winston Salem, N.C. native sandwiched a 3-pointer and two free throws around a USCA score, then drained another trey, as AU climbed within 54-43 and 1:24 remaining in the contest. With Anderson applying full-court pressure, Wilson came up with a steal and drew the foul, but was unable to convert the free throw. The Pacers' Mia Antone hit the first of two from the charity stripe and Siniard followed with 15-foot jumper. Following a Pacer turnover, Siniard found Wilson open for another 3-pointer and AU trailed, 55-48, with 18 seconds remaining. USC Aiken sophomore Hannah DeGraffinreed hit two free throws to set the final margin, as the Trojans were unable to score in the final moments. "This game was lost on the boards," said Anderson head coach Jim Brunelli. "We won't always shoot well, so we have to get better defensively. We had some good looks at the basket, but the shots weren't falling early." The Pacers held a 47-29 rebounding advantage and pulled down 18 offensive caroms. Neal led all scorers with 17 points and collected a team-high seven rebounds, while handing out four assists. Wilson added 11 points, while Beeson threw in eight points in 16 minutes. DeGraffinreed recorded a double-double with 11 points and 10 boards. Anderson has a five-day break before Belmont Abbey invades the Abney Center to open Conference Carolinas action on Tuesday, Nov. 24 in the opening contest of a women's/men's doubleheader. Tip-off is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. Game Stats