CHARLESTON, S.C. – Radford fell short in its comeback bid as it fell at Charleston Southern, 67-61, Monday evening from CSU Fieldhouse.

Box Score

Radford rallied from an early 11-point deficit to take a brief two-point lead in the second half. After one more tie, a free throw by Ali Schwagmeyer with 5:10 left gave CSU the lead (52-51) for good.

Following two freebees to get within one (54-53), Kelsey Wasmer drained a three-pointer on the next possession to put Buccaneers up 57-53 at 4:02.

Radford rallied to within one possession three times in the final four minutes, but CSU hit critical free throws to seal the victory.

Redshirt senior Kymesha Alston (Hampton, Va./Manhattan) led the Highlanders with 12 points, seven rebounds and two blocks. Junior Denay Wood (Bailey's Crossroads, Va./Annandale) and freshman Victoria Hamilton (St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands/Antilles School) contributed 11 points apiece.

Katie Tull and Wasmer paced the Buccaneers with 19 and 18 points, combining for six of CSU's seven three-point field goals.

Charleston Southern raced out to a 20-9 lead in the first 5:03 behind a blistering start from the field (7-for-10). It was highlighted by a 3-for-3 performance from long range by Katie Tull, who scored 11 of her 12 first half points during the run.

Kickstarted by Kahealani Vick's (Virginia Beach, Va./Princess Anne) back-to-back layups, Radford used a 13-4 run to get back into the game and cut CSU's lead to 24-22 with 5:20 on the clock. Vick finished the half with six points.

The Buccaneers answered the Highlanders' run with six straight points and pushed their lead to 30-22. A pair of free throws and Wood's baseline jumper at 2:07 made it a 30-26 ball game and that would end up being the halftime score.

After the hot start, Charleston Southern cooled off and hit just 4-of-16 field goals and finished the half shooting 42.3 percent. Both teams struggled to hold onto the ball, combining for 21 turnovers (11-CSU; 10-RU). The Bucs took advantage, scoring 15 points off of Highlander miscues, while Radford netted just six points.

Charleston Southern would extend its lead to seven points three times in the first 7:29 of the second half before a Wood layup culminated a 12-3 spurt, giving the Highlanders their first lead (49-47) at 8:41 since scoring the opening bucket of the game.

Radford out rebonded CSU, 42-30 and won the turnover battle (23-20). Vick grabbed a game-high eight boards to go along with eight points, both tying a career-high.

Radford steps out of Big South play on Friday, Jan. 29 when it hosts Davidson in non-conference action from the Dedmon Center at 7 p.m. This contest is a make-up of the Dec. 18 matchup that was postponed due to a snowstorm.