Wednesday, December 18, 2002

CONWAY, S.C. (Dec. 18, 2002) -- The Lady Bucs held a commanding advantage on the boards, but the Coastal Carolina women's basketball team defeated East Tennessee State, 72-62, Wednesday evening from Kimbel Arena in Conway, S.C. Coastal Carolina held a 34-31 lead after a competitive first half of play. The second half was more of the same, as the Lady Chanticleers outscored the Lady Bucs 38-31. East Tennessee State held the lead midway through the second half, but a Coastal run put the game away. ETSU (2-6) was led by sophomore forward Tiffani Mayes (Sumter, S.C.) who had 12 points, along with ten rebounds and three blocks. Senior guard Samantha Copeland (Evansville, Tenn.) also scored in double-digits for the Lady Bucs, contributing 10 points on the evening. Junior forward Lauren Trantham (Asheville, N.C.) led ETSU with 11 rebounds, while freshman guard Adrienne Walker (Augusta, Ga.) led the team with five assists. Coastal Carolina's (4-2) Nikki Reddick scored a game-high 24 points, along with five rebounds, five steals and five assists, while Lady Chant Cyndie Troutman added a career-high 15 points off the bench. Trailing 42-37 with 16:40 to play, Troutman would help ignite a 12-6 Lady Chant run, with eight points, as Coastal re-took the lead for good at 49-48 with 10:28 remaining. Despite the loss, ETSU controlled the boards, outrebounding Coastal, 55-34 on the evening. The Lady Chants were 8-of-16 from three-point range, while ETSU was 0-of-10. The Lady Bucs return to action when they host UNC Asheville on Dec. 30 from Memorial Center in Johnson City, Tenn.