PEMBROKE – In front of a record crowd at Lumbee River EMC Stadium, freshman Alexis scored twice in the second half, the latter with 26 seconds to play, to give the UNC Pembroke soccer team a much-needed, 2-1 Peach Belt Conference (PBC) victory over visiting USC Aiken on Wednesday evening.

MATCH INFORMATION
Score: UNC Pembroke 2, USC Aiken 1
Records: UNC Pembroke (11-4-1, 6-2-1 PBC); USC Aiken (4-12-0, 2-8-0)
Location: Lumbee River EMC Stadium
Series: UNC Pembroke leads 14-0-3

HOW IT HAPPENED
Box Score/Play-by-Play

FIRST HALF
-The Braves littered USC Aiken keeper Karin Cadwalader with 10 shots, including four on goal, in the opening 45 minutes, but the Pacer netminder was up to the task on each of them.
-UNCP's best chance came in the 14th-minute when Pittman had a one-on-one opportunity with Cadwalader, but the USC Aiken keeper made a sliding save to prevent an early Black & Gold lead.
-The Pacers fired one shot in the first half from over 30 yards out that sailed well over the Gina Ryan and the UNCP net.

SECOND HALF
-USC Aiken uncorked the first two shots of the second stanza and forced Gina Ryan to make her lone save of the night in the 50th-minute.
-After five shots and three corner kicks in the first 19:24 of the second half, the Braves finally broke through in the 67th-minute when Pittman took a ball from Shannon O'Neill and banked it off the right post and past backup Pacer keeper Katie Commins. Cadwalader left in the 57th-minute with an injury.
-With the clock ticking under six minutes to play, the Pacers took advantage of just their second shot on goal of the night when Casey Rish crossed a ball off the fingertips of Gina Ryan and onto the foot of Catherine McHale. The Pacers' leading goal scorer did not miss her chance at an open net and knotted the match at 1-1 in the 85th-minute.
-The Braves' third overtime game of the season looked inevitable with under 30 seconds to play, but Kate Weisner sent a desperation cross into the box that found the right foot of Pittman, who deposited the ball into the back of the net with just 26 ticks on the clock.

NOTABLES
-Wednesday marked the fourth time this season that the Braves have scored with under two minutes to play in a period and the third time it either tied or won the game.
-The 536-person crowd broke the record for the highest-attended UNCP women's soccer game in program history.
-The Braves extended their unbeaten streak over USC Aiken to 17-consecutive matches, dating back to the first meeting between the sides in 2002.
-Pittman's goals were her team-leading sixth and seventh of the season to tie her with Stacey Scott for the team lead in points with 17.
-Pittman's .209 shot percentage leads all Braves who have at least three shots this season.
-O'Neill's assist was her fourth of the season, while Weisner dished out her first helped of the season.
-The Braves outshot USC Aiken 23-8 and held an 8-2 advantage in shots on goal.
-Weisner paced the hosts with five shots, while Pittman and Scott each took four shots.
-UNCP will be seeded anywhere from third to sixth in next week's PBC Tournament based on Saturday's results.

UP NEXT
The Braves host Young Harris on Saturday with a right to host a PBC Quarterfinal on the line. UNCP and Young Harris are currently tied for fourth in the league standings and the top four teams host teams five through eighth in the opening round of the tournament. The Black & Gold needs a win on Saturday to host a quarterfinal on Tuesday, as the Mountain Lions hold the tiebreaker over UNCP if the teams were to draw. Young Harris (9-4-1, 6-2-1 PBC) ran past Georgia Southwestern 9-0 on Wednesday. The Braves lead the all-time series 6-0 over Young Harris, including a 1-0 win over the Mountain Lions on a Carly Rochelle goal in the 110th-minute in the 2016 regular-season finale.