MONTGOMERY, Ala.—The Fire battled back from a 13-point deficit in the fourth quarter against No. 14 Loyola, but ultimately fell 55-53 at the end.
Bekki Kalaydjiev's layup with 22 seconds left tied the game at 53 and gave her a team-high 18 points on the day and the Fire (1-1) forced a traveling violation on the next possession by the Wolf Pack (3-0). Southeastern was called for a technical foul, giving Loyola two free throws and the ball and control of the final six seconds of the game.
A 9-1 run to start the third quarter pushed the Wolf Pack up 48-35 with 6:55 to play. Southeastern answered with a 10-0 run to get within a possession with 3:50 left on a pair of free throws by Kalaydjiev.
Loyola stretched the lead back to eight on a 3-pointer with 2:52 left, but Kalaydjiev answered with a 3-ball of her own on the next possession to keep the Fire within reach.
Anja Knoflach's jumper with 56 seconds left brought the Fire within two and set up the finish.
Knoflach added 12 points, going 5-of-13 from the field.
Defense was the name of the game as Loyola was held to just one 3-point make and 36% from the field. The Fire were 25% from the field and were good on five 3-pointers.
The Fire held a 26-24 lead at halftime after making just eight field goals in the first 20 minutes.
Rebecca Cook led the rebounding effort with eight.
Southeastern will head to Thomas on Monday for a non-conference game at 5:30 p.m.
