CONWAY, S.C. – The Coastal Carolina Chanticleers scored 28 consecutive points to erase a 10-point first-half deficit, then held on late to preserve a 45-37 win over Old Dominion in the Sun Belt Conference opener on Saturday night at Brooks Stadium.
Playing in front of 18,522 fans for its annual "Whiteout" game, Coastal scored at least 40 points for the third time this season and amassed 515 yards of total offense while forcing three Monarch turnovers.
Ethan Vasko had a career night, throwing for 367 yards and three touchdowns on 19-of-26 passing.
Cameron Wright led the receivers with four catches for 148 yards and a touchdown, while
Christian Washington rushed eight times for 89 yards.
Braydon Bennett accounted for two touchdowns on the ground and added a receiving touchdown, tying a career-high for total touchdowns in a game. Bennett also surpassed the 2,000-yard mark for all-purpose yardage in his career.
Shane Bruce and
Tobias Fletcher each accounted for eight total tackles to lead the Coastal defense.
Coastal fell behind in the first half, tying the score at 7-7 with 45 seconds left in the first quarter on a eight-yard touchdown pass from Vasko to
Cane Berrong. ODU scored the next 10 points to take a 17-7 advantage in the waning minutes of the second quarter.
CCU trimmed the deficit to 17-14 with 2:15 before halftime as Washington broke free for a 68-yard rush to set up a 12-yard touchdown pass from Vasko to Wright.
Coastal's defense put the Chants up on the next Monarch snap when
Wyatt Gedeon's strip sack and forced fumble bounced into the hands of
Juan Powell, who scooped up the loose ball and rambled 23 yards to make the score 21-17. Gedeon ended ODU's next drive with an interception to help the Chants take a four-point lead into the locker room.
The Chanticleer momentum continued early in the third quarter when Bennett burst into the end zone on a nine-yard run.
Barry Brown recovered a fumble at the Monarch 29-yard line on the next possession and Bennett capped Coastal's 28-0 run at the 3:08 mark of the third quarter with a four-yard run to put CCU up 35-17.
Old Dominion pulled within five points with 10:44 to play in the fourth quarter, but Coastal responded when Vasko hit Bennett on a swing pass. The running back did the rest, going 37 yards for the touchdown to make the score 42-30 with 7:56 remaining.
Kade Hensley added a 46-yard field goal with 2:47 left in the game. ODU cut the Chant lead to 45-37 with 29 seconds to play, but CCU recovered the ensuing onside kick to ice the game.
The Chanticleers travel to James Madison next Thursday to play the Dukes at 7:30 p.m. on ESPN2.
For complete coverage of CCU football, follow the Chants on social media @CoastalFootball (Twitter), facebook.com/CCUChanticleers (Facebook), @goccusports (Instagram), or visit the official home of Coastal Carolina Athletics at www.GoCCUsports.com.
