LAKELAND, Fla.- For an eighth-consecutive season, the Southeastern University Fire women's basketball team is heading to Sioux City, as the top-seeded Fire battled past the ninth-seeded Rust College Bearcats 66-62 in the NAIA Women's Basketball National Championship Opening Round Lakeland Bracket Final.
Second-chance points were a major help for the Fire, as SEU had more offensive rebounds (23) than defensive boards (22) in the contest and generated 13 second-chance points.
Rust came out and presented a tough matchup for the Fire on defense out the gate, holding SEU to 36.8% from the field in the first quarter. However, SEU found a way to extend possessions with six offensive rebounds in the first quarter to hold a 19-16 edge after 10 minutes of play.
SEU graduate center
Angela Perry set the tone early offensively for the Fire, scoring nine of her first 14 points in the opening period.
The Bearcats compiled a 9-2 run near the end of the second quarter to take their largest lead of the game over the Fire at 37-33 with 1:02 to go. Fire graduate guard
Marta Aranda swished a three-pointer with five seconds to go to make it a 37-36 Fire deficit at the half.
Southeastern came out and locked down Rust on the defensive end, holding the Bearcats to their lowest shooting percentage from both the field (28.6%) and from three-point range (16.67%) in the third quarter.
"We knew we were going to have to match their energy and physicality," shared SEU head coach
Tim Hays. "To win the battle of the boards by 16 against the top rebounding team in the country says it all. That's heart, that's hustle, that's effort."
Fire senior shooting guard
Raegan Linster scored six of her 11 in the third quarter, as SEU compiled a 10-2 run to end the period to take a 51-47 lead over Rust entering the final quarter of play.
SEU graduate guard
Rebecca Cook came through in clutch time for the Fire, scoring five of her seven points in the final quarter and going 3-3 at the free throw line, including two crucial free throws that cemented the 66-62 Fire victory with seven seconds to go in the game. Cook finished with a team-high 11 rebounds, six of those offensive boards.
"Coach had told us that Rust is a team that usually wins the possession battle so I knew that every rebound I could get would be another possession for us," commented Cook. "I just tried to hustle after every missed shot and help out the team in that way."
Perry had seven boards and three steals to accompany her 14 points.
Leilah Vigil had 13 points after going 5-8 from the field and had five rebounds.
Gabby Suarez dished out a team-best four assists.
The Fire will take on the twelfth-seeded Bethel University (Tenn.) Wildcats in the Round of 16 in Sioux City on Thursday March 17 at 2:00 p.m. eastern.
