ORANGEBURG, S.C. – Graduate student Deaja Richardson led the Coastal Carolina women's basketball team to a 73-61 road win over the South Carolina State Bulldogs in Orangeburg, S.C. on Wednesday evening. With the win, the Chanticleers improve to 1-2 on the young season, while the Bulldogs drop to 0-3 overall.
 
Richardson was aided by Alancia Ramsey and Makaila Cange as both recorded their first double-doubles as Chants. Ramsey finished with 17 points and 16 rebounds, while Cange added 11 points and 11 boards. As a team, the Chanticleers shot 34.8 percent on 24-of-69 from the floor and 7-of-25 from long-range for 28 percent. Coastal won the rebound battle 55-31 and finished 18-of-26 from the free-throw line. 
 
South Carolina State was led by Cassandra Colon and Jordan Releford with 11 points each with Morgan Beacham adding nine points. Rakyha Reid was the Bulldogs' top rebounder with seven. SC State finished 22-of-56 from the field for 39.3 percent.
 
Coastal took a three-point advantage as Cange hit a pair of free throws and Arin Freeman went 1-of-2 from the line just to see the Bulldogs even the score at 3-3 on an old-fashioned three-point play by Colon. The Chanticleers took an 11-3 lead with an 8-0 run, highlighted by a pair of three-pointers by Richardson.
 
South Carolina State used three-point shots by Beacham and Jiniah Hinton sandwiching a pair of free throws by CCU's Freeman to cut the Chants lead to 13-9. Coastal closed out the first period scoring with a long-range bomb by Zaria Hurston and a Richardson free throw to lead 17-9 at the break.
 
The Bulldogs opened the second quarter scoring with a layup by Releford to spark a 13-4 run to take a 22-21 lead on a Beacham layup. Coastal used a 5-0 run to retake the lead at 26-22, ignited by an old-fashioned three-point play by Ramsey and a layup by Richardson. South Carolina State closed the first-half action with a 5-1 run to even the score at 27-27 at the intermission.
 
In the third quarter, the two teams traded the first eight points to remain deadlocked at 31-31 before the Chants pushed in front at 34-31 on a Ramsey put back and a free throw by Hurston. The Bulldogs retook the lead at 35-34 with a 4-0 spurt just to see a Ramsey layup put Coastal back in front at 36-35.
 
South Carolina State raced to a seven-point advantage at 44-37 with a 9-1 surge only to see the Chants' Ramsey and Richardson team up for a 5-0 run to trail 44-42. After the Bulldogs increased their lead to 48-44, Coastal's Richardson sparked a 6-0 run to lead 50-48 before SC State's Jhaven Meade evened the score at 50-50 with a jump shot at the buzzer.
 
The two squads opened the fourth quarter by trading the first 13 points with the Bulldogs holding a 58-55 margin. Coastal's Richardson ignited an 18-1 burst to put the Chanticleers in front to stay at 73-59 with eight straight points and capped off by a three-pointer by Cange. The Bulldogs closed the scoring with a pair of free throws by Colon for the final margin of 73-61.
 
Coastal Carolina will remain on the road as the Chanticleers travel to Greenville, S.C., for a contest with in-state foe Furman on Saturday, Nov. 18. Tipoff is scheduled for 2 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.