LAKELAND, Fla.- Following a fourth-place finish in the NAIA World Series in the 2022 season, Southeastern softball began the 2023 season with high expectations.
Returning six of their starting position players including the reigning Sun Conference Player of the Year,
Jamie Mead, and their top two arms in
Claire Sekinger and
Autumn Hunter, the Fire posted a 33-18 overall record and fell just one game short of both the SUN Regular Season title (19-5) and tournament title.
The season saw eight All-Sun Conference selections, four All-Tournament selections, a SUN Champion of Character, six wins over NAIA Top 25 programs, four NFCA All-Region selections, and eight Daktronics Scholar-Athletes.
During the season,
Haleigh Harrell also became the career record holder in multiple categories including games played (250), at bats (753), hits (248), doubles (53), and stolen bases (96).
Freshman catcher
Nicole Wasserstrom became the first player in program history to earn an NAIA Rawlings Gold Glove after committing just one error in 211 chances and cutting down 14 runners stealing.
Hunter, Sekinger,
Leah Gonzalez, and
Chapel Cunningham all were named to the NFCA All-Region team and joined
Erica Stahl, Mead,
Lauren Sekinger, and Harrell on All-Conference teams.
Along with their success on the field, Cunningham and Gonzalez also earned national attention after their unparalleled act of sportsmanship went viral after they carried their opponent across the bases following a go-ahead grand slam by Grand View's Kaitlyn Moses in which Moses went down with an injury and was unable to finish the grand slam herself.
After receiving an at-large bid into the national tournament, the Fire earned a spot in the Ashland Bracket in Ashland, Oregon hosted by the eventual national champions, Southern Oregon. In game one of the Ashland Bracket, the second-seeded Fire faced off against the third-seeded Eagles of Reinhardt where they fell 6-4 to move to the loser's bracket. The Fire were then tested by top-seeded Southern Oregon who ended the Fire's season with a 2-0 victory.
Beginning the season ranked No. 4 in the NAIA behind the fourth place finish the previous year, the Fire struggled early as they dropped seven of their first 10 contests of the year, four of which came against No. 2 Mobile and No. 11 Grand View.
A trip to Gulf Shores, Ala. for spring break was all they needed to turn the season around. During the trip, the Fire went 4-1 with all four wins coming over Top 25 ranked programs and the only loss coming in a 2-1 ball game against Texas A&M-Texarkana who would conclude the season ranked No. 11 nationally. The Fire took down then-ranked No. 12 William Carey (6-4), No. 24 University of the Cumberlands (4-1), No. 20 Campbellsville University (4-2), and No. 8 Central Methodist (3-1) and rode the spring break momentum for the remainder of the season.
The Fire then opened SUN play with a three-game series sweep at home of Webber International, a World Series team the year prior.
The Fire continued to dominate the SUN, winning 11 of their next 13 SUN contests, dropping one game each to St. Thomas University and eventual regular season tournament champs, Coastal Georgia.
Down in West Palm Beach, Fla., the Fire dropped their lone SUN series of the season after dropping two to Keiser University to allow the Mariners to expand the gap for the regular season title.
The regular season concluded with a series win over Ave Maria on the road to secure their 19-5 SUN record and No. 2 seed in the tournament.
Game one of the tournament saw the Fire dominate the Bobcats with a 12-1 win in five innings, setting up their first tournament meeting with the top-ranked Mariners. The Mariners sent the Fire to the loser's bracket after a 6-1 victory.
With their backs against the wall, the Fire took down Warner University 1-0 to secure a spot in the championship where they would again fall to the Mariners in an 11-inning battle by a score of 4-2.
Head coach
Kayla Watkins stated, "They understood the keys to being successful on and off the field and that's what they pursued. We hit some roadblocks early in the year, but this group stayed committed, and we were able to make a statement in early March knocking off numerous ranked NAIA contenders. This set the stage for another great year for our program. I'm excited to see us continue to build on this legacy of excellence."
