GREENVILLE, S.C. — Deshara Shealey scored 15 points to lead three Lady Paladins in double figures as Furman defeated Coastal Carolina 61-56 in women's basketball action Sunday evening at Timmons Arena.

The Lady Paladins, trailing 28-24 at the break, opened the second half on
a 10-0 run to grab a 34-28 lead with 18:24 remaining. Coastal Carolina
answered with a 12-5 run to regain the lead at 42-39 with 11:41 left.
Furman, playing its first home game since a November 22, victory over
Oglethorpe, took the lead for good, 43-42, on Kim Lawrence's jumper with
10:16 remaining in the game.

The Lady Paladins who missed all five of their free throw attempts in the
first half, converted 13-19 from the line in the final twenty minutes.
Furman controlled the boards by out rebounding the Lady Chants 50-41.
Coastal Carolina shot 32.7 percent from the field, while the Lady Paladins
were 33.9 percent from the floor.

Junior Laney Harris and sophomore Jen Nadalin joined Shealey in double
firgures with 11 and 10, respectively. Harris connected on a career-best
three 3-pointers, while Nadalin accounted for a team-high nine rebounds.
Katie Roach added nine points and eight boards for the Lady Paladins.

Courtney Brown and Molly Meeks paced Coastal Carolina with 12 points each, while Crystal Brown chipped in nine points and a game-high 11 boards.

The win was Furman's second straight and improves the Lady Paladins to 4-5 on the season. The Lady Chants fall to 4-4.

Furman opens Southern Conference play hosting the UNC Greensboro Spartans Thursday at 5:00 p.m. Coastal Carolina returns to action at Radford on Thursday.