DUE WEST, S.C. -- Using a second-half run and paced by Ashley Abed's game-high 16 points, Anderson held off Erskine, 61-60, in Conference Carolinas women's basketball action Tuesday night at Belk Arena. Anderson (10-8, 9-4 Conference Carolinas) built a 12-point second-half lead on Abed's third 3-pointer of the night and the double-digit cushion held strong for much of the second half, but the Flying Fleet chipped away at the deficit and eventually climbed within one with 1:08 left, but the Trojans' defense held firm. Erskine's Porsha Morgan scored six unanswered points inside the 2:05 mark and trimmed Anderson's lead to 59-58, with just over a minute remaining, but Abed connected for her sixth basket of the night to boost the AU advantage back to three with 12.5 seconds on the clock. The Trojans' Lauren Beeson then sent Morgan to the line, where the sophomore hit both ends of a one-and-one to pull EC back to within one, at 61-60. The Flying Fleet then fouled junior guard Alexa Neal, who couldn't connect on the front end of the bonus with 6.2 ticks on the clock. Following a 30-second timeout by Erskine, the ball was inbounded to senior guard Audry Timmerman, whose desperation half-court heave at the buzzer rimmed out as the horn sounded. The win snapped a three-game skid for the Trojans, who defeated the Flying Fleet, 71-52, on Jan. 21 at the Abney Center behind Neal's 21 points. The Fleet defeated Coker in their last outing after having dropped their previous three contests and fell to 7-7 overall and 6-7 in the conference. "I told the players that we were in for a dogfight," Anderson head coach Jim Brunelli said. "We knew no lead was safe. I'm very proud of the players for pulling out the win." Both teams opened the game cold on the offensive end, with neither team able to get on the scoreboard until Trojan guard Amanda Parris drained a long 3-pointer to give Anderson an early lead with just more than two minutes gone. Eskine's Mary Ann Lanford answered with four consecutive points to give the Flying Fleet a brief lead before AU regained the lead on a trey from AU's Alexa Neal. The two-point advantage was short-lived however, as EC's Timmerman connected on a 3 of her own with 15:44 left for a 7-6 Fleet lead. Turnovers proved costly for the Trojans, enabling Esrkine to edge out to a 15-8 cushion, their largest of the first half, but Anderson responded with a 10-2 outburst to reclaim the advantage at 18-17 at the 4:24 mark. Senior forward Korie Sellers worked inside for her second straight basket that ignited the surge and the Trojans used great offensive board work to grab four rebounds in the three-minute span. Egle Bauzite and Lauren Beeson sandwiched baskets around a score by EC's Audrey Timmerman, and Abed capped the Trojan run with a 3-pointer for the Trojans' first lead since the 16:42 mark. The first half featured two ties and nine lead changes, including four inside the final five minutes of the half. Trailing 20-18 with just more than four minutes remaining, Abed scored seven of the Black and Gold's final nine points of the frame to set the 27-25 AU lead at intermission. The Trojans opened the second half with a 7-4 run to push out to their largest lead of the night to that point, 34-29, and forced Erskine to call for a quick timeout. The break didn't slow the Anderson squad, as the run grew to 15-6 with 14:30 left and AU leading 42-31. Anderson's defense stepped up to hold the Fleet to just one basket for a span of 3:57. Abed led all scorers with 16 points and collected a game-high eight rebounds, while freshman Maci Siniard added 14 points. Parris chipped in 12 points on 4-of-5 shooting from beyond the arc. Neal dished out eight assists and grabbed six boards. The Trojans get back on the hardwood Saturday afternoon when AU plays host to Mount Olive. Tip is slated for 2 p.m. at the Abney Center in the first of a three-game homestand.