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Women's Hoops Returns Home to Face Birmingham-Southern

       

Women's Hoops Returns Home to Face Birmingham-Southern

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Coastal Women’s Basketball Returns to Conway to Host Birmingham-Southern

The Coastal Carolina University women’s basketball team (10-6, 1-2 Big South) returns from its short road trip to host Birmingham-Southern (6-11, 1-2 Big South) Monday, Jan. 22 at 5 p.m. The game is the first half of a men’s-women’s doubleheader as the men’s team hosts High Point at 7:30 p.m. The game can be heard on www.GoCCUSports.com with Garry Griffith on the call and will be live video streamed on THE EDGE at www.BigSouthSports.com. Coastal earned its first Big South win of the season at UNC Asheville, defeating the Bulldogs 73-61 Jan. 20.

Scouting Birmingham-Southern

Birmingham-Southern also broke through in the win column in the Big South with a 75-59 win over Charleston Southern Jan. 20. The Panthers were led by Reba Ross’ 21 points, while Pam Thornborrow added 18. Hali Moore had a game high 11 rebounds in the win. Ross leads the Panthers, averaging 13.4 points per game. Mallory Morring is right behind her at 9.5 points per game and leads the team with 44 three-pointers. The Panthers lead the League in steals, and freshman Marisah Henderson has 46 of them.

The head coach of Birmingham-Southern is Brad Hodge, who is in his second season with the Panthers. He has an 18-27 record at the school and a 98-63 record in five-plus years as a head coach.

Series vs. Birmingham-Southern

The two teams have each won six games in the all-time series. Coastal won all three games last year, including a 50-35 win in the Big South Tournament quarterfinals in Conway, S.C. Senior Calisha Yates (Columbus, Ind./Chattanooga State C.C.) averaged 10 rebounds a game in the three contests versus the Panthers. Coastal has won three games in a row against BSC in Conway.

Dill Fourth in Nation in Scoring Average

Senior Alisha Dill (Johnson City, Tenn./Science Hill) is averaging 22.6 points per game after 16 contests, good for fourth in points per game in NCAA Division I basketball. Dill set a new career high with 33 points in a 58-33 win over Campbell Dec. 11. She has scored 26 or more points on six occasions this year and now has 1,051 career points. She is coming off a 20-point performance against UNC Asheville Jan. 20.

Carrie Moore of Western Michigan leads the nation with 25.5 points per game, followed by Crystal Kelly of Western Kentucky (23.5).

Dill Scores Her 1,000th Point vs. Liberty

Senior Alisha Dill (Johnson City, Tenn./Science Hill) became the 10th player in Coastal women’s basketball history to score 1,000 points in a career Jan. 13 against Liberty. Her three-pointer with 5:22 left in the game gave her 1,001 points. She scored 22 points against Radford Jan. 15, giving her 1,031 for her career. Dill also is the 51st player in Big South history to reach the 1,000-point mark. She currently is in ninth place on Coastal’s all-time scoring list, needing 129 points to pass Janice Dewitt for the eighth spot.

Free Throws Back on Track at Asheville

After struggling from the free-throw line in a 61-59 overtime loss to Radford Jan. 15, the Lady Chanticleers went 21-of-28 from the line in the 73-61 win over UNC Asheville. Junior C.J. Ware (Decatur, Ga./Lakeside) was a perfect 6-of-6 from the stripe, while junior Victoria Blanchard (Eutawville, S.C./Walters State C.C.) and senior Alisha Dill (Johnson City, Tenn./Science Hill) had six and five free-throw makes, respectively. Coastal scored its last 11 points off free throws in the win over the Bulldogs and tied a season high with 28 free-throw attempts.

Justice Center Losing Streak Comes to an End

Coastal snapped a three-game losing streak at UNC Asheville with the 73-61 win Jan. 20. The Lady Chanticleers will look to keep the winning streak going March 8-10 as the Big South Tournament will be held in Asheville, N.C.

Double-Doubles Becoming Commonplace

After not having a double-double the first 14 games, Coastal has achieved the feat each of the last two contests. Senior Vanessa Laug (Cincinnati, Ohio/Oak Hills) had 10 points and 10 rebounds against Radford Jan. 15 and junior Victoria Blanchard (Eutawville, S.C./Walters State C.C.) had 10 points and 10 rebounds in the 73-61 win over UNC Asheville. It was the first career double-double for both players.

Dill Scoring Over 20

Senior Alisha Dill (Johnson City, Tenn./Science Hill) kept her string of scoring 20 or more points in a game alive by scoring 20 in the 73-61 win over UNC Asheville Jan. 20. She has a streak of four straight games, three in Big South play, of scoring 20 or more and has achieved that mark 14 times in her career.

Defense Among the Nation’s Best

In the latest NCAA rankings out Jan. 18, Coastal Carolina is 19th in defense, giving up 55.3 points per game. Coastal is averaging 8.8 steals, 16.0 turnovers and 3.6 blocks per game. LSU is the national leader, giving up 46.4 points a contest.

Laug Earns CCU’s First Double-Double of the Year

Senior Vanessa Laug (Cincinnati, Ohio/Oak Hills) scored 10 points and pulled down 10 rebounds in the 61-59 overtime loss to Radford Jan. 15. It was Coastal’s first double-double of the year and the first since Kim Turner did the trick by scoring 13 points and grabbing 14 rebounds vs. High Point Feb. 25, 2006. Laug upped her rebounding average to 4.5 boards a game.

Rivers Stuffs Stat Sheet vs. Flames

Freshman Devin Rivers (Miami, Fla./Felix Varela) played 21 minutes off the bench against Liberty Jan. 13, scoring nine points, grabbing six rebounds, blocking three shots and coming up with two steals. Rivers set a career high in both points and blocks and now leads the team with 28 steals.

I See a Pattern

Coastal entered the Big South opener having won nine games in non-conference action. Coastal also had nine wins heading into the opener last season. Coastal ended last season with 18 wins, going 7-7 in conference. Coastal will have one more non-conference game, Feb. 5 at Savannah State.

Blanchard Breaks Out Against Savannah State

Junior Victoria Blanchard (Eutawville, S.C./Walters State C.C.) had a breakout game against Savannah State Jan. 9, achieving career highs in points (21), rebounds (8), assists (4) and steals (2) in the 71-51 win over the Tigers. Blanchard was 9-of-13 from the field and connected on all three of her free-throw attempts. She also had six offensive boards. The junior is averaging 6.4 points and 4.6 rebounds a contest.

Guards Getting Boards vs. Tigers

Junior Victoria Blanchard (Eutawville, S.C./Walters State C.C.) and freshman Amanda Stull (Rushville, Ind./Rushville Consolidated) had eight rebounds apiece in the 71-51 win over Savannah State Jan. 9. In fact, Coastal guards combined for 25 of the team’s 46 rebounds.

Lyons Earning National Recognition for Three-Point Shooting

Freshman Lacey Lyons (Beverly Hills, Fla./Crystal River) has reappeared on the national rankings in three-point field goal percentage. Lyons currently is 34th in the country in three-point field goal percentage at 41.3 percent (as of Jan. 18). The current leader nationally is Sidney Spencer of Tennessee at 51.9 percent.

 

Chants Live in Paint in Win over Coker

Coastal Carolina scored 38 of its 77 points in the paint in the 77-43 win over Coker Jan. 4. The Lady Chants also used their size advantage to grab 48 rebounds and block seven shots. Freshman Devin Rivers (Miami, Fla./Felix Varela) and senior Calisha Yates (Columbus, Ind./Chattanooga State C.C.) led the team with seven rebounds, while senior Kristy Yurichak (Walton Hills, Ohio/Lakeland C.C.) had a team-high four blocks.

Career Highs Fall in Converse Win

There were several career highs set in the 73-43 win over Converse Dec. 31. Freshman Lori Whitaker (Bloomington, Ind./North) set a career high in scoring with 10 points. Senior Vanessa Laug (Cincinnati, Ohio/Oak Hills) tied her career high with eight rebounds in the win. Freshman Amanda Stull (Rushville, Ind./Rushville Consolidated) set a career high with eight assists, which also is a season high for a Coastal player.

Defense Especially Tough From Outside the Arc

The Coastal Carolina defense is holding its opponents to just 25.0 percent from three-point range this season. This includes holding UNC Greensboro to just 2-of-10 from three in a 64-54 loss Dec. 16. Meanwhile, the Coastal offense is shooting 36.8 percent from behind the arc, led by freshman Lacey Lyons’ (Beverly Hills, Fla./Crystal River) 41.6 percent.

 

Ware in Giving Mood

Junior C.J. Ware (Decatur, Ga./Lakeside) tied her career high with seven assists in a 71-51 win over Savannah State Jan. 9. The junior point guard leads the team with 3.4 assists per game and also is averaging 3.2 rebounds a contest.

Coastal Sweeps Weekly Big South Honors for Second Straight Week

Coastal Carolina’s Alisha Dill was named the Big South Conference Choice Hotels Player of the Week in women’s basketball, while teammate Lacey Lyons was tabbed New Balance Freshman of the Week for games played Dec. 18-Jan. 1, the League announced.

Dill, a senior from Johnson City, Tenn., averaged 18.3 points per game over the holiday break to lead her Lady Chanticleers to a 2-1 record. She got her week started with 11 points against No. 2 North Carolina on Dec. 18. Two days later against UNC Wilmington, she put in 29 points as she connected on 44 percent from the floor and 2-of-3 from beyond the arc. She also added 11-of-12 from the charity stripe for 92 percent in the win against the Seahawks. She closed her week out with 15 points in just 21 minutes as Coastal Carolina downed Converse on Dec. 31. In the three-game span, Dill was 41 percent from the floor on 17-of-42 shots and hit 44 percent of her shots from downtown (4-of-9). She was 17-of-20 at the line for 85 percent, and she also notched 12 rebounds, seven assists and five steals in the three games.

Lyons, a forward from Beverly Hills, Fla., averaged 15.7 points per game and shot 52 percent from the floor for Coastal Carolina during the holiday break. She scored in double figures in each of the three contests, including 19 points against No. 2 UNC on Dec. 18. She connected on 16-of-31 from the floor in the three-game span and was 50 percent from downtown on 12-of-24 shots. She also finished with five boards, two blocks and one assist for the Lady Chants.

Freshman Racking Up Big South Honors

Coastal Carolina freshman Amanda Stull (Rushville, Ind./Rushville Consolidated), Lacey Lyons (Beverly Hills, Fla./Crystal River) and Devin Rivers (Miami, Fla./Felix Varela) have each won Big South Freshman of the Week honors this season. They become the 11th trio in Big South history to earn the honor by one team in the same season. Last season, Liberty’s Megan Frazee, Moriah Frazee and Rebecca Lightfoot all earned the honors.

Lyons Finds Form vs. #2 Tar Heels

Freshman Lacey Lyons (Beverly Hills, Fla./Crystal River) went 7-of-12 from the field, including 5-of-9 from three-point range, for 19 points against #2 North Carolina Dec. 18. Lyons upped her scoring average to 9.6 points per game.

Coastal Sweeps Big South Awards

Coastal Carolina’s Alisha Dill has been named the Big South Conference Choice Hotels Player of the Week in women’s basketball, while teammate Devin Rivers was tabbed New Balance Freshman of the Week for games played Dec. 11-17, the League announced.

Dill, a senior from Johnson City, Tenn., averaged 28.0 points per game to lead the Lady Chanticleers to a 2-1 record on the week. She got her week started with 33 points on 13-of-26 for 50 percent from the floor and 5-of-13 from downtown as CCU downed Campbell, 58-33 on Dec. 11. Two days later, the guard connected on 10-of-18 from the field (56 percent) and added two treys and two free throws for 24 points to lead the Lady Chants to the win over North Greenville. She capped her week off with 27 points, including five treys in Coastal’s game against UNC Greensboro on Dec. 16. For the week, Dill hit 32-of-66 shots from the floor for 49 percent and shot 43 percent from beyond the arc (12-of-28), and posted 14 boards, seven assists and seven steals. Dill currently ranks No. 2 in the country in scoring, averaging 24.8 points per contest.

Rivers, a center from Miami, Fla., averaged 5.7 rebounds and 4.0 points per game on the week. She got her week started with seven boards against Campbell on Dec. 11 and followed that performance with a career-high eight points and eight rebounds against North Greenville two days later. On Dec. 16 at UNCG, she closed her week out with three points and two rebounds in the loss to the Spartans.

Dill Also Block Shot Leader

Senior Alisha Dill (Johnson City, Tenn./Science Hill) blocked three UNC Greensboro shots in the 64-54 loss Dec. 16. She now has 14 blocks on the year, tied for the team lead.

Ware Sets Career High In Rebounds

Junior C.J. Ware (Decatur, Ga./Lakeside) set a career best by grabbing eight rebounds in a 64-54 loss to UNC Greensboro Dec. 16. The point guard led all players with the eight boards and now is averaging 3.2 rebounds a game.

Coastal Defense Stingy in Win over Campbell

The Coastal Carolina defense held Campbell to just 20 percent shooting and 33 points in the 58-33 win over the Fighting Camels Dec. 11. Campbell was just 1-of-15 from three-point range and was held to its lowest scoring output in school history. Coastal’s defense forced Campbell into 22 turnovers and senior Alisha Dill (Johnson City, Tenn./Science Hill) led the charge with three steals.

Dill Feeling It in Win over Camels

Senior Alisha Dill (Johnson City, Tenn./Science Hill) continued her breakout senior campaign with a 33-point outburst against Campbell Dec. 11. Dill was 13-of-26 from the field, hit five-three pointers and had five rebounds, three assists, three steals and a blocked shot. Dill became the third player in the Big South this season to score 30 or more points, joining freshman teammate Lacey Lyons (Beverly Hills, Fla./Crystal River) and Liberty’s Megan Frazee. She also has scored 26 or more points in a game six times this season.

Lyons Named Big South Freshman of the Week

Coastal Carolina freshman women’s basketball player Lacey Lyons (Beverly Hills, Fla./Crystal River) was selected as the Big South Conference New Balance Freshman of the Week for games played Nov. 20-26, the League announced.

Lyons, a forward from Beverly Hills, Fla., posted 15.3 points and 4.7 rebounds per game, including 30 points against Howard, to lead the Lady Chanticleers to a 2-1 record on the week. She got things going with 11 points and seven boards in CCU’s 90-31 win over Southern Virginia on Nov. 20. Against IPFW on Nov. 25, she put in five points and notched one board for Coastal. The next day against Howard, Lyons caught fire as she was 10-of-12 from the floor (83 percent), 6-of-8 from three-point land (75 percent) and was perfect 4-for-4 from the free throw line for Coastal Carolina. She also chipped in six boards in the contest as CCU dropped the Lady Bison, 85-78. For the week, she was 56 percent from the floor on 15-of-27 shots, 59 percent from beyond the arc on 10-of-17 tries and was perfect from the line, connecting on all six attempts.

Coastal Puts Up Points Against Howard

Coastal Carolina shot 48.3 percent from the floor, including 54.5 percent from three-point range, in its 85-78 win over Howard Nov. 26. The 85 points were the highest scored by Coastal against a Division I opponent since Feb. 1, 2003 in a 96-94 triple-overtime win over Radford.

De-Fense, De-Fense

Coastal Carolina held Southern Virginia to 31 points Nov. 20, the second lowest point total in school history by an opponent. Southern Virginia shot 25.5 percent and went 1-of-15 from the three-point line. The school record for lowest points in a game by an opponent is 23 by Coker during the 1982-83 season.

Stull Named Big South Freshman of the Week

Coastal Carolina freshman women’s basketball player Amanda Stull (Rushville, Ind./Rushville Consolidated) was selected as the Big South Conference New Balance Freshman of the Week for games played Nov. 13-19, the League announced.

Stull, a guard, connected on all four of her shots from the field and posted eight points in Coastal’s 70-56 win over the College of Charleston Nov. 16. She also dished out two assists and came up with three steals and one rebound for the Lady Chants in the win.

Stull becomes Coastal’s first Big South Freshman of the Week since Whitney Shearer was named on Feb. 5, 2001.

Coastal Improves in Season Openers with Win over CofC

Coastal Carolina improved to 8-2 in season openers under head coach Alan LeForce with its 70-56 win over the College of Charleston Nov. 16. Coastal shot 51 percent from the field in winning its second straight opener on the road.

New Kids on the Block

Coastal played four newcomers in the win over the Cougars and they combined for 21 points and eight rebounds. Junior Victoria Blanchard (Eutawville, S.C./Walters State C.C.) made her first career start and had seven points and two assists. Freshman Amanda Stull (Rushville, Ind./Rushville Consolidated) was a perfect 4-for-4 from the field for eight points while adding two assists. Freshman Lacey Lyons (Beverly Hills, Fla./Crystal River) hit two big three-pointers for six points, while freshman Devin Rivers (Miami, Fla./Felix Varela) had five rebounds and three assists.

Chanticleers Picked Fourth in the Big South

The Coastal Carolina University women’s basketball team has been picked to finish fourth in the Big South Conference’s annual preseason poll, as voted on by the League’s Head Coaches, Sports Information Directors and media panel. The announcement was made Oct. 10 in Charlotte, N.C., as part of the 2006-07 Tip-Off Media Luncheon.

Coastal received 117 points in the preseason poll. Liberty was picked to finish first for the 10th year in a row, as the Lady Flames garnered 21 first-place votes and finisihing with 202 points. The Lady Flames were followed by High Point (178 points, four first-place votes), Winthrop (136 points), Coastal, Radford (115 points, one first-place vote), UNC Asheville (100 points), Birmingham-Southern and Charleston Southern (44 points apiece).

Head Coach Alan LeForce

Coastal head coach Alan LeForce (Cumberland (Ky.) ’57) is starting his 10th season as the Lady Chanticleers’ mentor. He has a 135-133 record at CCU and a 375-313 overall record in 24 seasons as a head coach. LeForce is the all-time winningest women’s basketball coach in CCU history and is the only coach to win 100 games in both Division I men’s and women’s basketball.

New Faces for the Chants

Coastal Carolina has eight players on its roster that will play their first Division I season. Five of the eight newcomers are true freshmen, as Lauren Grochowski (Naperville, Ill./Central), Lacey Lyons (Beverly Hills, Fla./Crystal River), Devin Rivers (Miami, Fla./Felix Varela), Amanda Stull (Rushville, Ind./Rushville Consolidated) and Lori Whitaker (Bloomington, Ind./North) are just out of high school. Elizabeth Weaver (Unicoi, Tenn./Unicoi County) redshirted her first season at CCU, while Victoria Blanchard (Holly Hill, S.C./Holly Hill-Roberts) transferred from Walters State Community College. Heather Hummel (Franklin, Pa./Rocky Grove) transferred from Slippery Rock and will have one season of eligibility remaining.

Laug Starts Redshirt Senior Campaign

Redshirt senior Vanessa Laug (Cincinnati, Ohio/Oak Hills) started her fifth season Thursday night against the College of Charleston. Laug redshirted during the 2002-03 campaign with a knee injury after playing four games for the Lady Chants. Laug has 228 points and 221 rebounds in her Coastal career.

All CCU Games to be Broadcast on the Internet

The Coastal Carolina University women’s basketball team will have every regular-season and post-season game broadcast on the internet during the 2006-07 season, the first time in school history that every minute of CCU women’s basketball will be on the air. Beginning with the season opener Nov. 16 against the College of Charleston, all 28 games will be available on www.GoCCUSports.com. The broadcast will start 10 minutes prior to tipoff.

In addition, every post-season game, beginning with the 2007 Advance Auto Parts Big South Tournament March 8 in Asheville, N.C., will be broadcast on both www.GoCCUSports.com and THE TEAM 93.9 FM in Myrtle Beach.

Big South to Video Stream All Women’s Basketball Conference Games

For the first time in League history, the Big South Conference will video stream live its women’s basketball home Conference games free on the its premium content website, The Big South EDGE presented by Aéropostale, it was announced by Big South Commissioner Kyle B. Kallander. All Conference games involving Big South members will be available exclusively online beginning with the 2006-07 season, and the webcasts will utilize a one-to-three camera production with home audio, when available.

Coastal’s first game on the EDGE will be Jan. 13 against Liberty in Kimbel Arena at 2 p.m.

 

CCU Signs Four Student-Athletes to National Letters-of-Intent

The Coastal Carolina University women’s basketball program has signed four student-athletes to National Letters-of-Intent, head coach Alan LeForce announced Nov. 9.

"We feel like we’ve added another strong class," LeForce said. "We think this group is every bit as good as the recruiting class last year. We’ve had two straight strong recruiting classes and that’s the way you build a program. We feel very good about it. We’ll still be young as we’ll have 10 freshmen and sophomores for next season, but they are good players."

The following is a list of the student-athletes coming to Coastal Carolina in 2007-08.

Name Pos. Ht. Hometown

Courtney Grambley F 6-1 Morrow, Ohio

Kate Jasinski G 5-6 Birmingham, Ala.

Jessica Noll F 6-0 Myrtle Beach, S.C.

Katie White C 6-3 St. Charles, Ill.

Coastal Loses Scoring from Last Season

Coastal Carolina graduated 59.6 percent of its scoring off last year’s team, including two double-digit scorers in Amber Rose (11.5 ppg) and Kim Turner (11.0 ppg). Coastal does return Alisha Dill and Calisha Yates, who averaged 11.3 and 9.4 points per game, respectively.

Injury Report

Freshman Lauren Grochowski (Naperville, Ill./Central) is out for tonight’s game with an injury.

Ware Controls Point

Junior C.J. Ware (Decatur, Ga./Lakeside) will be the starting point guard for the Lady Chants to start the season. Ware was second on the team with 61 assists last season and added 35 steals. Ware started 26 of Coastal’s 28 games in 2005-06 and averaged 2.8 points per game.

Up Next

Coastal hosts Charleston Southern University Saturday Jan. 27 at 5 p.m., in Kimbel Arena.