Box Score MIAMI GARDENS, Fla.—The Fire defeated Florida Memorial in dominating fashion on Saturday afternoon without dropping a set (25-13, 25-22, 25-18) to improve to 20-7 (10-4 TSC) on the year.
After falling behind 6-2 early in the opening game, Southeastern won 17 of the next 24 points to take a commanding 18-13 lead thanks to five of
Kelsey Morton's match-high ten kills. The Fire then followed that stretch with an impressive 7-0 run to finish off the first set and handily win by 12 points. Morton finished the day with a .450 hitting percentage.
The momentum Southeastern gained at the end of the first frame carried over into the second. SEU started the next set by winning 13 of the first 16 points to jump out to a ten-point advantage over the Lions.
Florida Memorial was able to claw their way back into the set after a 12-6 Lions run cut the Fire's lead to four. Late in the game, the Lions came as close as three points, but were unable to come back due to strong defense by Southeastern.
Keniah Rivera Santiago contributed in the back row with a team-high 19 digs on the day, while blocking at the net also made a difference in the second game.
Six separate SEU players recorded a block in the match, allowing the Fire to take the second set by a score of 25-22 and go up 2-0 in the contest.
Southeastern asserted their will on the game yet another time to start the third period. After a 10-3 stretch gave the Fire a 12-7 lead, back-to-back aces by
Kaitlin Boyd put the Fire up for good in what would be the final set. The senior finished the competition six digs, five kills and four blocks.
Freshman
Kaity Reed added four of her eight kills in the frame, fueling a seven-point victory as the Fire blanked the Lions.
The triumph propelled Southeastern to their 20
th win, the most in a single season since 2013. The victory over Florida Memorial also marked the first time the Fire have ever won ten matches in Sun Conference play (eight of which have been sweeps).
The Fire will look to further rewrite their record books as they return home for a match against Coastal Georgia. First serve is scheduled for 7 p.m. on Wednesday.
