Women's Basketball Continues Early Slate Against Top Competition

LAKELAND, Fla.- The No. 2 Southeastern University women's basketball team looks to continue its early-season stretch through top-NAIA competition. The Fire are on the west coast this weekend for a pair of match-ups against NAIA Division I opponents at the Bill Holtz Warrior Classic, hosted at William Jessup University. First, SEU faces No. 5 The Master's University tomorrow afternoon before taking on host-school RV William-Jessup the following Saturday night.

GAMES:

Bill Holtz Warrior Classic | Warrior Arena | Rocklin, California
Friday, 1:00 p.m. at No. 5 The Master's University Mustangs
Saturday, 10:30 p.m. at RV William Jessup University Warriors

COVERAGE:
WATCH/LIVE STATS

FIRE FOCUS:

• The Fire went 1-1 in a high-profile season opening tournament in Point Lookout, Mo. SEU defeated NAIA Division II No. 3 College of the Ozarks 74-56 before falling to No. 1 Concordia (Neb.) in a 2019 National Championship Rematch 63-62 in overtime.
• Junior small forward Taylah Simmons made an immediate impact for the Fire in her first two games in an SEU uniform. The Wagner-transfer recorded a double-double in both contests for SEU, averaging 16 points and 11.5 rebounds per game through the tournament.
• Sophomore guard Raegan Linster was also a double-digit scorer for SEU over the weekend, turning in 10 and 16-point performances.
• This weekend will mark the first contests the Fire have played in California in program history.

ALL-TIME SERIES:

• This will mark the first time Southeastern has ever competed against The Master's or William Jessup in women's basketball

THE MUSTANGS:

• TMU is coming off a 28-7 2018-19 season in which the Mustangs advanced all the way to the NAIA Division I National Tournament Quarterfinal before bowing out Montana Western 60-55.
• The Mustangs return two of their top leading scores from last season in sophomore forward Stephanie Soares and junior forward Anika Neuman.
• Soares was a force in the paint both offensively and defensively for TMU last season, averaging a team-leading 16.2 points and 10.8 rebounds per game last season.
• Neuman averaged 10.8 points per game last year and shot .371 (49-132) from three-point range.

THE WARRIORS:

• William Jessup is coming off a 20-11 season last year, in which the Warriors advanced to the First Round of the NAIA Division I National Tournament, where they were eliminated by Wayland Baptist 83-38.
• The Warriors return their four top leading scorers from 2018-19, all of which who averaged double-digit scoring per game last season.
• Senior guard Creonah Bryant is back after averaging 17 points and eight rebounds per game last season.
• Junior center Miranda Zaragoza is another key returner for William Jessup after averaging 15 points and an NAIA Divison I-leading 21 rebounds per game last year.

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