CONWAY, S.C. – Coastal Carolina women's basketball forward Aja Blount led four Chanticleers in double-digit scoring as the Chants defeated the Furman Paladins 69-54 at the HTC Center on the campus of Coastal Carolina University on Sunday afternoon. The Chanticleers improved to 3-5 on the season with the win, while the Paladins dropped to 6-5 with the loss.
 
The win snapped the Chants' three-game losing streak to the Paladins and marked the first win for CCU in the series since 2005.
 
CCU's Blount recorded a game-high 16 points, while Anaya Barney, Deaja Richardson, and Arin Freeman chipped in with 14, 13, and 12 points, respectively. Freeman finished with a career-high 16 rebounds to record her first double-double of the season and second of her young career, while Blount just missed hitting double digits in rebounds with nine boards.
 
Furman was led by Grace van Rij and Sydney James with 14 points each, while Evie DePetro finished with 12 points. The Paladins leading scorer Jaelyn Acker chipped in with six points and led Furman with a game-high 10 rebounds.
 
The contest seesawed back-and-forth for the opening two minutes as the Paladins opened the scoring from the free throw line as Jada Sessions hit 1-of-2 as the visitors took the early lead at 1-0. Coastal's Blount answered both early Furman scores with a layup and a pair of free throws to give the home team a 4-3 advantage.
 
The Paladins doubled up the Chanticleers with a van Rij fast break layup and a James three-pointer to go up 8-4, just to see CCU's Barney answer with a long-range three-point shot to cut the lead to one at 8-7. After Furman surged out to its largest lead at 13-7, Coastal called its first timeout and answered with six points to even the game at 13-13, sparked by a layup by Arielle-Vadrelle Belinga and capped by a driving fast break layup by Freeman. Both teams traded the next 12 points with Furman holding a slim 20-18 advantage at the end of the first quarter.
 
The second quarter was dominated by the Chants' and their pure lockdown defense, as the Chanticleers shut out the Paladins and outscored the visitors from Greenville, S.C. 24-0. The shutdown quarter was the first for Coastal Carolina women's basketball.
 
CCU's Barney put the Chants in front for good at 21-20 with her second three-point shot of the game. With just over four minutes to play in the first half, Coastal's Freeman added to the lead with a layup and the opportunity for a three-point play the hard way after getting fouled.
 
Coming out of the break in the action, Coastal scored the final 12 points as Barney sandwiched six free throws with a pair of three-pointers for the 42-20 score at halftime. The second three-pointer by Barney came as time expired in the first-half action.
 
The Chanticleers opened the third quarter of play with Blount hitting back-to-back layups to push their advantage to 46-22. After the two teams traded baskets, Furman called the first timeout of the third period following a fast break layup by Richardson off the dish by Blount. CCU's Richardson repaid the assist to her teammate Blount to give the Chanticleers their largest lead at 52-24.
 The Paladin's leading scorer Acker recorded her first basket minutes later, knocking down a three-point shot to spark a 5-0 burst for the visitors.
 
With 4:09 remaining to play in the third quarter, Coastal's Blount recorded her 12th point to put the Chants up 54-29 and moved the Northampton, Pa., native into third on the Chanticleers all-time scoring list with her 1,583rd career point. Furman outscored the home team 9-2 for the rest of the quarter to cut the Chants' lead to 56-38 with 10 minutes left to play.
 
The fourth quarter opened with both teams unable to find the bottom of the basket and forced Coastal into calling its first timeout with just 1:11 expiring from the game clock. After the timeout, CCU's Barney and Blount answered a Furman basket to maintain a 20-point advantage at 60-40.
 
The Paladins cut the Chants' lead to 62-50 with a 10-2 run, just before Coastal answered with a 7-1 run to keep the Chanticleers in front at 69—51, highlighted with five consecutive points by Richardson. Furman's DePetro closed out the scoring with a three-pointer for the final margin of 69-54.
 
Coastal Carolina will return to action on Thursday, Dec. 15, as the Chanticleers will host Erskine in Conway, S.C. The opening tip is scheduled for 6 p.m. ET.


 
For complete coverage of CCU women's basketball, follow the Chants on social media @CoastalWBB (Twitter), facebook.com/CCUChanticleers (Facebook), @GoCCUSports (Instagram), or visit the official home of Coastal Carolina Athletics at www.GoCCUSports.com.