CONWAY, S.C. – Coastal Carolina University head women's basketball coach Kevin Pederson has announced the signing of seven newcomers Riley Stack (Piedmont, S.C./Wren HS), Kendahl Spearman (Greenwood, S.C./Legacy Charter Early College HS), Tiara Abron (Senatobia, Miss./Senatobia HS), Jaylen Ponder (Pompano, Fla./St. Petersburg College), Alancia Ramsey (Fort Lauderdale, Fla./St. Thomas Aquinas HS), Zaria Hurston (Decatur, Ga./DePaul), and Dalanna Carter (Beach City, Texas/Barbers Hill HS) to the Chanticleer program for the 2023-24 school year.
 
The 2023-24 class is the first full signing class for Pederson after arriving on campus in the spring of 2022.
 
"We are very excited to announce the seven new members of our Coastal Carolina WBB Family, as we believe they will significantly improve our overall talent level and help us become a stronger team. I want to thank our associate head coach, DeCole Shoemate Robertson for her tireless efforts to organize our recruiting efforts and lead the way in putting this class together. With us graduating both of our starting post players, it was essential to sign two high level players capable of coming in and making an immediate impact and we believe that Riley and Alancia will do just that," said Pederson. "In addition to addressing our needs in the post, we felt that it was essential for us to increase our firepower from the perimeter. With Dalanna and Kendahl, we have added two dynamic point guards that fit our style of play very well on both sides of the ball. On the wings, the addition of Jaylen, Zaria and Tiara will give us three talented players with great length and scoring ability. Overall, we couldn't be more excited to welcome not only outstanding players, but a really good group of student-athletes that will make us a stronger unit on and off the court."
 
Riley Stack
Piedmont, S.C.
Wren HS
Center/Forward
 
Stack, the first commit for the 2023-24 cycle, was named all-state for the third straight time in 2022-23. As a senior at Wren High School, Stack was second on the team with 13.1 points per game while leading the Hurricanes with 6.0 rebounds per game and 2.3 blocks per game. In her four years at Wren, the 6-4 center/power forward totaled 14.7 points per game, grabbed 8.8 boards per contest, and blocked 4.2 shots per game.
 
Kendahl Spearman
Greenwood, S.C.
Legacy Charter Early College HS
Guard
 
In her single season at Legacy, Spearman averaged 9.1 points per game while grabbing 2.1 rebounds per game and dishing out 1.8 assists per contests as a senior. While at Emerald High School, the 5-7 point guard was named all-state in 2020-21 and is a two-time 3AAA All-Region player and a two-time All-Lakeland first-team member. In 2021-22, Spearman was named the Region Player of the Year and District 4 Female Player of the Year. She scored her 1,000th career point on Feb. 17, 2022.
 
Tiara Abron
Senatobia, Miss.
Senatobia HS
Guard
 
Abron was a member of the Senatobia High School girls' basketball team from 2017-2021 and was part of the 2021 Mississippi state championship team.  In 2017-18, Abron was named the team's Rookie of the Year and followed that up in 2018-19 by being named the All-District Best Offensive Player and 1-4A Offensive MVP. In 2019-20, she was named the Region 2 District 3A Tournament MVP, All-District Best Offensive Player and earned a spot on the All-District Tournament team. In her senior season, she was named to the Region 2 District 3A first team All-District Offensive Player of the Year, won the best offensive award, and was named to the all-division team by the region coaches. She scored her 1,000th career point in February of her senior year. Abron played at Coahoma Community College last two seasons, where she averaged 10.2 points per game including a career-high 24 points in December 2021.
 
Zaria Hurston
Decatur, Ga.
Norcross HS/DePaul
Forward
 
Hurston spent the 2022-23 season as a member of the DePaul Blue Demons women's basketball program, where she appeared in 25 contests coming off the bench. A true freshman, she averaged 1.6 points per game while grabbing 1.4 rebounds per contest for the Blue Demons. Prior to joining DePaul, the Decatur, Ga., native was a four-year letterwinner at Norcross High School, where she led her team to both the region and state championships in 2022 with a 26-5 record. As a senior, Hurston averaged 18.0 points, 10 rebounds, and 2.5 steals per game for the season. She was named the 7A Region Player of the Year, was nominated for Georgia Miss Basketball, and was named the state champion MVP. Over her high school career, she scored over 1,000 career points and grabbed over 700 rebounds.
 
Jaylen Ponder
Pompano, Fla.
Blanche Ely HS/St. Petersburg College
Forward
 
A transfer from St. Petersburg College, Ponder averaged a double-double with 11.0 points per game and snagging 11.4 boards per contest. The 5-11 forward was named All-FCSAA (Florida College System Activities Association) first team and Suncoast Conference All-Conference first team last season in 2022-23. Prior to St. Petersburg, Ponder played at Palm Beach State College, where she averaged 11.5 points per contest and grabbed 8.3 rebounds per game. At Blanche Ely, Ponder led her team to 2018 district championship and followed that up with the 2019-20 state championship, where she averaged eight points and eight rebounds per contest.
 
Alancia Ramsey
Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
St. Thomas Aquinas HS
Forward
 
A 6-0 forward, Ramsey was named the 2020-21 Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Player of the Year, while also leading her team to a clean sweep of the BCAA Big 8, district, regional, and state championships. Ramsey averaged 12.9 point, 7.6 rebounds, and 1.1 assists per contest. She was also named to the 2021-22 Class 7A-6A first team. Ramsey did not play as a senior, but opted to play for Essence on the EYBL circuit.
 
Dalanna Carter
Beach City, Texas
Barbers Hill HS
Guard
 
The Beach City, Texas native scored over 3,000 career points while averaging 26.9 points, 4.8 rebounds, 2.6 assists, and 5.7 steals per game for her high school career at Barbers Hill High School. Carter was a 2023 McDonald's All-American nominee while being named Texas Association of Basketball Coaches (TABC) All-State and All-Region while helping her team reach the region semifinals. She also runs track, where she won back-to-back 3A Texas Association of Private and Parochial Schools (TAPPS) titles as a sophomore and junior.
 
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