Box Score

CONWAY, S.C. – The Longwood University women's basketball team led by as many as 17 points in the second half before dropping a 66-62 decision at Big South Conference opponent Coastal Carolina University (9-12, 4-7) on Thursday evening in Conway, South Carolina. Senior Chelsea Coward|Mechanicsville notched her ninth double-double of the season with 15 points and 10 rebounds to lead the Lancers (9-12, 6-4) in the outing. Sophomore Shatia Cole totaled a game-high 20 points, including the game-winning bucket, to help the Chanticleers mount a 23-6 run late in game.  Longwood returns to action on Saturday, February 2 when the squad visits league opponent Campbell University to conclude its four-game road swing. Tipoff is scheduled for 1 p.m.

Longwood won the opening tip and used a 12-0 run, sparked by a pair of jumpers from senior Mieke Elkington|Hamilton, New Zealand, to take an early advantage with 15:15 remaining in the first half. Coastal got on the board with seven straight points from Cole before outscoring the Lancers 6-3 to make it just a two-possession game, at 17-13 with just under 10 minutes left in the half.  Longwood quickly increased its buffer back to nine, aided by a three-point jumper from freshman Jaclyn Reagan|Crossville, Tenn. and a jumper from freshman Raven Williams|Richmond, but Coastal followed with 10 unanswered points to take its first lead of the game, at 23-22 with 4:42 left in the half. Longwood retaliated with a jumper from beyond the arc by Reagan, and although the Chanticleers pulled ahead, 27-25, Reagan knocked down another three to send the Lancers into the break with a slight, 28-27 advantage.

Buckets from freshman Daeisha Brown|Richmond and senior Erin Neal|Durham, N.C. helped ignite a 12-2 Lancer run in the opening minutes of the second half, making it a 40-30 contest with 16:04 remaining. Longwood extended its lead to 12 on a jumper from Elkington, at 44-32, and followed with a 12-7 run to take its largest lead of the night, up 56-39, with 10:30 to go. Coastal Carolina would not stay down for long, as the home team mounted a 23-6 comeback run to knot the game at 62-62 with just 1:53 to play in the contest. The Chanticleers' Cole drained the go-ahead jumper to give her squad the lead for good before adding a pair of free throws to seal the victory. A last-second effort by the Lancers went unanswered, as CCU earned the 66-62 decision.

In addition to the double-double effort from Coward, Elkington and Neal added to the offensive effort with 11 points apiece to round out the double-digit scorers for the Longwood. Reagan knocked down a personal-best, three, three-point jumpers, en route to a career-high nine points. As a team, the Lancers shot 43% (23-54) from the floor, including 23% (5-22) from beyond the arc, and 69% (11-16) from the line.

Alexx Puckett and Kayla Cook tallied 10 points apiece for CCU. As a whole, the Chanticleers shot 29% (19-65) from the field, 18% (3-17) from three-point territory and 78% (25-32) from the foul line. Coastal Carolina will play its next contest against Radford on Feb. 2 beginning at 4 p.m.

Thursday's contest marked just the fourth meeting ever between Longwood and Coastal in the sport of women's basketball. The Lancers still hold a 3-1 advantage in the all-time series.