THOMASVILLE, Ga. – After a testing stretch against highly-ranked NAIA competition, the Fire returned to Sun Conference play in stride, as the No. 2 Southeastern University women's basketball team defeated the Thomas University Night Hawks in a stifling defensive effort on the road 66-47. The win marked the 48
th consecutive victory for SEU versus a Sun Conference opponent.
After a slower start for both teams in the opening period, the Fire went on an 8-0 run versus the Night Hawks to close out the remaining 3:26 of the first quarter to take an 18-9 lead. Senior forward
Elsa Paulsson-Glantz scored eight of her game-leading 19 points in the first 10 minutes of action.
Despite shooting just 12.7% (1-8) from behind the arc in the first half, the Fire were able to create offensive opportunities through locking down on defense in the first half. SEU scored 12 points of 10 first-half Thomas turnovers, fueling SEU to a 31-19 lead at the intermission.
The Night Hawks showed resilience coming out of the half, trimming the deficit to within three (39-36) with 3:32 to go in the third quarter.
The Fire pulled away in the fourth quarter, using a 17-3 run to go up by 20 (66-46) with just over a minute to go.
Senior guard
Emma Karamovic totaled all eight of her points in the second half.
Interior dominance also proved to be a difference for Southeastern, as the Fire outscored the Night Hawks 38-6 in the paint. Junior center
Marlena Schmidt was a major factor in this, as Schmidt totaled 13 points, six rebounds, and two blocks.
The Fire remain in The Peach State, as they head to Brunswick to take on the College of Coastal Georgia Mariners on Saturday a 2:00 p.m.
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