Coastal Carolina University Women's Basketball

DeCole Shoemate Robertson joined the Coastal Carolina women’s basketball coaching staff as the associate head women’s basketball coach in April 2022 and is entering her fourth season in 2025. Robertson is no stranger to head coach Kevin Pederson, as she served on his staff at Lander as an assistant women’s basketball coach for 11 years. Robertson was essential to the staff that led the Chants to their most successful season in five years by going 23-9 and 12-6 in Sun Belt Conference play in 2024-25. The season marked the third time in recent history that Coastal had won 20 or more games and ranked as the second-most wins in a season in program history. The Chants also reached the Sun Belt Tournament semifinals for the first time ever, while making their first appearance in the WNIT. The 2024-25 squad set program-records for most points in a season with 2,379, most made three-pointers in a season with 240, and also led the Sun Belt Conference with 20.3 turnovers forced per game and +9.6 scoring margin.  Following the historic campaign, Savannah Brooks was named to the All-Sun Belt second team after leading the Chants with 13.1 points per game and ranking third in the conference with 2.3 steals per game.  Alancia Ramsey earned All-Sun Belt third team honors after averaging 12.3 points per game and 6.4 rebounds per game in her sophomore season. Ramsey finished the season averaging 13.2 points per game in conference play. The 2023-24 season saw the Chants finish 12-21 with a 5-13 conference record. Coastal advanced to the second round of the Sun Belt tournament after defeating South Alabama 79-60 in the first round.  In her first season in Conway, Robertson helped the Chanticleers to a ninth-place finish in the conference, with a 14-16 overall and 9-9 conference record. The Chants were selected to finish 12th in the preseason polls and defeated the conference's top teams in JMU, Troy, and Old Dominion throughout the season.   During her time at Lander, the Bearcats made the NCAA Division II Women’s Basketball Championship Tournament in nine of Robertson’s 11 years on staff, making the Elite Eight in 2012 and the Final Four in 2021.   Alongside Pederson, Robertson led the Bearcats to two NCAA DII Region Championships (2011-12 and 2020-21), two Peach Belt Conference regular-season championships (2019-20 and 2020-21), two Peach Belt Conference division championships (2015-16 and 2016-17), and two Peach Belt Conference Tournament championships (2015-16 and 2019-20).   After Robertson began her career with Lander as a volunteer coach from 2006-08, she then went on to join Brewton-Parker College in Mount Vernon, Ga. as the assistant women's basketball coach and recruiting coordinator where she signed several all-state players and transfers including a Kodak All-American.    In December 2008, Robertson took over sole head coaching responsibilities and went on to lead Brewton-Parker to the 2009 SSAC Conference Tournament, falling short to the No. 1 seed.   A native of Beaufort, S.C., Robertson led her high school team, Battery Creek, to a South Carolina 3-A State Championship. She was twice named Female Athlete of the Year and Player of the Year, and was a four-time all-area and regional player. She signed and played Division I basketball at Florida International (FIU) where she won a Sun Belt Conference Championship and made an NCAA Sweet 16 appearance. In Robertson's junior year, she became Pederson's first signee as a rookie coach, when she transferred to Anderson College. With the Trojans, she received all-conference honors, won a Carolinas-Virginia Athletic Conference Championship, and led Anderson to the school’s first-ever NCAA win.   Robertson also serves as an active member of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes. She speaks to schools around the southeast and FCA camps about her faith and the importance of Christian values. "My faith in Christ is the leading force in all I do. I know that with Him, I am able to do all things, but through Him, I will be the role model necessary to lead these young ladies," said Robertson.   In 2014 she was named Lakelands Fellowship of Christian Athletes 2014 Coach of the Year.   Robertson holds a bachelor’s degree in business management from Anderson College and a master’s degree in sports management from Liberty University.   She and her husband, Stephen, have a son, Joseph, and a daughter, Karis.  

Darius Carter is entering his third season as an assistant coach with the Coastal Carolina women's basketball squad in 2025. His second season saw the Chants put together to their most successful season in five years by going 23-9 and 12-6 in Sun Belt Conference play in 2024-25. The season marked the third time in recent history that Coastal had won 20 or more games and ranked as the second-most wins in a season in program history. The Chants also reached the Sun Belt Tournament semifinals for the first time ever, while making their first appearance in the WNIT. The 2024-25 squad set program-records for most points in a season with 2,379, most made three-pointers in a season with 240, and also led the Sun Belt Conference with 20.3 turnovers forced per game and +9.6 scoring margin.  Carter arrives in Conway, S.C., after spending the previous two seasons at Lander University working with the Bearcats men's basketball team. He served as the defensive coordinator for Lander and was named the associate head coach prior to the start of his second season in 2022-23.   "Coach Carter is a tremendous addition to our coaching staff! First and foremost, he is just a great person and somebody that our student athletes will enjoy working alongside each day. Second, he is an up and coming star in this business that brings a wealth of knowledge to our program," said Pederson. "His experience as an elite basketball player, coupled with his ability to develop a team defense will bring great value to our team. Coach Carter has also worked for a couple of outstanding offensive coaches and I look forward to seeing what improvements he can helps us make to our system."   Before arriving in Greenwood, S.C., Carter had stints at Southern Wesleyan and Northern Arizona. During his time at Southern Wesleyan, he facilitated recruiting, player development, and opponent scouting while also acting as the head coach for the junior varsity team. While with the Warriors, Carter helped to turn around a program that had just two wins in 2018-19 into a squad that captured 20 wins in the 2019-20 season. That turnaround was the largest in the country.   He helped coordinate a top-five defense in the Conference Carolinas along with the 14th-best three-point field goal defense in the nation. The 2019-20 Southern Wesleyan team claimed the Conference Carolinas Tournament Title, recorded the highest regional ranking in school history, and posted the first-ever win over a NCAA Division I program in school history.   At Northern Arizona, Carter was the recruiting coordinator and director of scouting during his three years in Flagstaff, Ariz. While at Northern Arizona, Carter earned his master's degree in educational leadership with an emphasis in higher education.   As a player, Carter attended Tusculum University where he was named a team captain and the team MVP while also earning all-conference honors his junior and senior seasons. As a junior in 2013-14, Carter led his team in scoring (16.0 ppg), assists (2.9 apg), and steals (1.4 spg). He also recorded a career-high 39 points in a game during the season. In 2015-16, Carter was the only player to start all 29 games and ranked first on the team in scoring (17.5 ppg), second in assists (3.4 apg), and second in steals (1.3 spg). He also led the Pioneers to two wins against teams ranked in the top 15.   Carter's name remains prominent in the Pioneers' record books, aside from being Tusculum's all-time leader in free throws made and attempted, he also ranks 12th in scoring with 1,338 career points and fifth in steals with 135 career steals.   He graduated from Tusculum University in 2016 with a bachelor's degree in sport management.

Tatum Burstrom is entering her third season as an assistant coach on head coach Kevin Pederson's women's basketball staff. In her second season on staff, the Chants put together to their most successful season in five years by going 23-9 and 12-6 in Sun Belt Conference play in 2024-25. The season marked the third time in recent history that Coastal had won 20 or more games and ranked as the second-most wins in a season in program history. The Chants also reached the Sun Belt Tournament semifinals for the first time ever, while making their first appearance in the WNIT. The 2024-25 squad set program-records for most points in a season with 2,379, most made three-pointers in a season with 240, and also led the Sun Belt Conference with 20.3 turnovers forced per game and +9.6 scoring margin.  Burstrom arrives in Conway, S.C., after spending the previous seven seasons at Carson-Newman University working with the Eagles women's basketball team. During her tenure at CNU, the Eagles averaged 22 wins in every season she was on the sidelines with the exception of 2020-21 when Carson-Newman only played 19 games going 15-4, in the COVID-19 shortened season.   "Coach Burstrom is a home run hire for our Coastal Women's Basketball Family!  She brings with her a wealth of knowledge and experience as a talented player and subsequently, an assistant coach, for a very successful Carson-Newman team," said head coach Kevin Pederson. "The first characteristic we look for when hiring staff is someone that will serve our student-athletes through a mentorship role as an assistant coach, and we believe Tatum is a person that our student athletes will love working with!"   In her time on the bench, the Lady Eagles are 155-51 overall with an 113-30 mark against the South Atlantic Conference (SAC). The program has won four regular-season championships, two SAC Tournament Championship, and one NCAA Southeast Regional Championship, while earning the first Elite Eight appearance in the program's history. Burstrom helped guide the Lady Eagles to six NCAA tournaments, five as an assistant coach and one as a player.   With the Eagles, Burstrom had a hand in recruiting and developing five NCAA Division II All-Americans in two-time winner Haris Price (2017-18, 18-19), Mika Wester (2017-18), Kayla Marosites (2019-20), and Braelyn Wykle (2020-21). The last All-American the Lady Eagles had seen prior to that run was in 2010.   On March, 6, 2019, Burstrom was named to the WBCA's Thirty Under 30 list honoring 30 up-and-coming women's basketball coaches age 30 and under at all levels of the game. She was one of nine coaches from the NCAA Division II ranks to be listed.   Before settling on the bench at her alma mater, Burstrom played four years where she became the 17th Lady Eagle to score 1,000 points in her career with 1,234 career points. She wrapped up her career as the program's all-time leader with 254 career made three-pointers, which ranked fourth all-time in the SAC.   She was the fifth Lady Eagle to earn postseason honors in three seasons after being named to the SAC All-Freshman team in 2012-13, earning honorable mention All-SAC honors in 2014-15, and garnering All-SAC second team accolades in 2015-16.   "Burstrom was an all-conference guard that set the record for career three-point shooting at Carson-Newman and we have a lot of confidence that she will do a great job working with our backcourt at Coastal Carolina," Pederson continued. "Her hard work, experience developing all-conference guards, and most importantly, her passion to see our student-athletes reach their maximum potential, make her an outstanding addition to our Coastal WBB Family!"

Coastal Carolina women’s basketball head coach Kevin Pederson added former DII national champion coach Dennis Cox to bolster the defense for the Chanticleers in 2024. Cox is entering his second season on staff in 2025. In his first year on staff,  the Chants put together to their most successful season in five years by going 23-9 and 12-6 in Sun Belt Conference play in 2024-25. The season marked the third time in recent history that Coastal had won 20 or more games and ranked as the second-most wins in a season in program history. The Chants also reached the Sun Belt Tournament semifinals for the first time ever, while making their first appearance in the WNIT. The 2024-25 squad set program-records for most points in a season with 2,379, most made three-pointers in a season with 240, and also led the Sun Belt Conference with 20.3 turnovers forced per game and +9.6 scoring margin.    “Dennis is an incredible addition to our coaching staff and he brings a wealth of experience and knowledge with him that will impact our program in a very positive way,” stated Pederson. “Coach Cox had successful stops as a head coach at Daytona State and Clayton State, including winning the D2 National Championship in 2011, by using a defense that really dictated the flow of the game.  I have always had a tremendous amount of respect for Dennis as a person and as a coach and I am looking forward to utilizing his talents with our team.  We are excited to welcome his wife, Ruth and him both to our Coastal Carolina basketball family.”   Cox comes to Coastal Carolina University with a wealth of teaching and coaching experience at various levels of prep and higher education. He was previously the Director of Athletics and School Advancement at Pathways Private School in Orlando, Fla. Prior to attaining nearly 600 wins in 30 years as a collegiate head women’s basketball coach, he began his career as a high school science teacher and coach for eight years at Seminole Osceola, William R. Boone, and Lake Highland Prep, where he led the Girls Basketball team to a District Championship in 1988.   Following the success at Lake Highland, Cox became the first full-time head women’s basketball coach at Valencia College in 1989, where he compiled a 144-97 record over eight seasons, including four seasons with 20 or more wins and three state tournament appearances.   Cox guided the inaugural women’s basketball program at Daytona State College, and in six years he built Daytona State into a national power. He compiled a 147-41 record, won three Mid-Florida Conference championships, a Mid-Florida Conference Tournament championship, and had a region runner-up finish. His top season at Daytona was in the 2002-03 campaign when the Falcons finished fourth in the nation in the National Junior College Athletic Association final poll with a 29-2 record. He received the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) Region IX Coach of the Year honor in 2003, was the Mid-Florida Conference Coach of the Year three times, and was inducted into the Florida College System Activities Association Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame in 2013 for his coaching success at Valencia and Daytona State.   Cox then took over the helm of the women’s basketball program at Clayton State University prior to the 2004-05 season, where he made an immediate impact. In ten seasons, Clayton State became one of the elite programs in NCAA Division II with an overall record of 267-57, garnering seven Peach Belt Conference regular season championships, four Peach Belt Conference Tournament championships, and ten straight trips to the NCAA Division II National Tournament. Cox led the Lakers to the NCAA Division II "Final Four" in 2007 and the "Elite Eight" in 2009 and 2013, along with a "Sweet 16" appearance in 2008. The culmination of that success, however, was in the 2010-11 season when he paced Clayton State to its first-ever NCAA Division II National Championship that saw the Lakers dominate throughout the tournament, winning six games by an average of more than 21 points.   Under Cox, the Clayton State women’s basketball program was an incredible 96-6 (.941) from 2010-2013, the top winning percentage of any program at the NCAA Division II level. In fact, out of over 1,000 women’s teams competing at the NCAA Division I, II, and III levels, there was only one women’s basketball program that had fewer losses than Clayton State’s six. Baylor University, at the NCAA Division I level, (during the Brittney Griner era) had five.   Along with this success came numerous postseason honors. He was selected Peach Belt Conference Coach of the Year four times, the John "Whack" Hyder" State of Georgia Women's College Coach of Year three times, NCAA Division II Southeast Region Coach of the Year, and the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) Division II National Coach of the Year. In 2016, the Peach Belt Conference celebrated its 25th anniversary, and Cox was one of 25 members elected to the inaugural Hall of Fame class.   After Clayton State, Cox spent six years as the head women’s basketball coach at San Francisco State University and California State University Maritime Academy, respectively. In the last three years at Cal Maritime, he also served as Sports Coordinator, which included administrative duties associated with Community Engagement and Academic Success for student-athletes.   A native of Orlando, Fla., Cox prepped at William R. Boone High School, where he competed in cross country, basketball, and baseball, and is a member of the Boone High School Athletics Hall of Fame. He competed intercollegiate in baseball at the United States Air Force Academy and basketball at Eckerd College, where he majored in biology. He earned his master’s degree in physical education from the University of Central Florida.  

Chelsea Jameson is entering her second year on Kevin Pederson's staff in 2025-26. She was hired as the Director of Operations after previously serving as a student manager for Coastal Carolina women's basketball from 2020-2023. Her first season saw the Chants put together to their most successful season in five years by going 23-9 and 12-6 in Sun Belt Conference play in 2024-25. The season marked the third time in recent history that Coastal had won 20 or more games and ranked as the second-most wins in a season in program history. The Chants also reached the Sun Belt Tournament semifinals for the first time ever, while making their first appearance in the WNIT. Jameson graduated from Coastal Carolina in 2023 and served as a graduate assistant for the Chanticleer Athletic Foundation in 2024. Jameson will graduate in the fall of 2025 with her master's in sport management.