BABSON PARK, Fla.—Southeastern knew it needed a win at Webber International Saturday afternoon to keep hopes of a Sun Conference regular season title alive.
Connecting on 10 3-pointers did exactly that.
The Fire improved to 21-5 on the season with a 73-68 win, thanks to a 51% shooting effort.
Carlie Newman was the catalyst in the first half, scoring 14 of her season-high 18 in the first 20 minutes, helping the Fire build a 44-33 lead after two quarters. The senior connected on a pair of 3-pointers, and was 6-of-9 from the field.
The Warriors cut the deficit to three in the third quarter, thanks to five points from Mar'Lisa Braxton in the final 3:30 of the period.
Again, it was outside shooting that helped keep WIU at bay as
Alyssa Ramos connected on one with 6:33 left, shortly after Webber had cut the deficit to two.
The hosts got the game back within a point at 65-64 with 4:36 remaining, but Newman converted a layup and
Bailey Hooker converted a three-point play to give SEU a 70-64 advantage, and enough breathing room to hang on.
Webber had a pair of game-tying attempts in the final 100 seconds that failed. Two free throws by
Ali Sanders, who finished with a team-high 19 points, iced the game.
Ramos finished the night with 11 points, as did
Christin Strawbridge, who added nine rebounds.
The Fire return to action next Saturday for Senior Night against Keiser at 2 p.m.
