The match featured three ties and three lead changes, and Alabama State (0-2-1) finished the match out shooting the home-standing Spartans 19-15.
 
USC-Upstate's (1-1-1) Rachel Baylor took five shots for the home team and found the back of the net on two of those to lead the Spartans in scoring.
 
The second half and overtime periods saw the Hornets out shoot USCU 12-10, but only found the back of the net on one shot from Ariela Lewis as each shot was a potential match winner for both teams.
 
"We would have liked to have gotten our first win today and we did enough offensively to win this match," Head Coach Jodie Smith said.  "We scored three goals and that should have been enough.  We did a lot of good things, and had some good looks at the goal; we just didn't finish the way we should have."
 
The Hornets had leads of 2-1 and 3-2, and held their final lead until five minutes left in the match when they gave up the final goal to even the score.
 
"We did not play with any discipline on the back row and every time we got a lead it cost us," Smith said.  "We have to go back and find the personnel for the rotation that is going to work for us on the back."
 
Baylor scored her first goal one minute into the match and ASU trailed 1-0, but never panicked.  ASU started to slowly gain control of the match and when Ariela Lewis picked up a loose ball just outside the box, she was able to blast in a shot past the USC Upstate goalie to even the score at one.
 
ASU continued to put pressure on the Spartan defense with seven first half shots and five of those being on goal.  Five minutes after one Lewis sister scored, Mooregan Elder found a streaking Aaliyah Lewis down the left side of the USCU defense who scored the second goal which gave ASU the lead which they carried into halftime.
 
Gianna Guyot was in goal the entire match for ASU and finished with three saves.
 
Today's game was the first of three straight road match and starts a run of seven of the next nine matches on the road.  ASU will head to Arizona to face Northern Arizona in Flagfstaff, Ariz., Sept. 4 at 9 p.m.  ASU will also face Grand Canyon Sept. 6 at 2 p.m. in Phoenix, Ariz.