Box Score THOMASVILLE, Ga. – After playing to a 2-1 halftime lead, the Fire had to come from behind to beat the Thomas Night Hawks, 4-3, to take the season opener.
The Fire gave up a goal just 14 seconds into the contest when Pearl Mortimer found the back of the net.
Ariadna Lozano tied the game for SEU four minutes later from an assist by
Alivia Knapp.
Madelyn Davidson gave the Fire a 2-1 lead when she scored at the 40:18 mark, assisted by
Amelia Hammond.
The Night Hawks scored twice in just over a two-minute period midway through the second half, the second by Mortimer, to take a 3-2 lead. The Thomas lead lasted only six minutes, as Davidson scored her second goal of the game after tapping in a rebound off a
Katie Carnes shot to tie the match for a third time, 3-3, at 71:50.
Only 6:19 later, Southeastern pressured the Night Hawks again when Lozano belted her shot toward the goal and the rebound went to Vogel who sent it back in, only to have it knocked into the net by a Thomas defender for an own goal for what would be the winning score and 4-3 final tally. The SEU defense held Thomas to a single shot over the final 12 minutes of play.
The Fire victory runs the program's win streak in the series with Thomas to eight-straight matches dating back to 2016. The teams last met in Thomasville on November 1, 2022, resulting in a 2-0 SEU win. The Fire win also is the first opening victory since two years to the day in a 2-0 road win over the Olivet Nazarene.
Davidson took a team-high six shots and scored on two of her three shots on goal. Lozano had three shots. In net, keeper
Madison Songer stopped nine of the 12 shots she faced over 90 minutes.
Southeastern will enjoy the opening win for a week before its first home match next Saturday, September 3, at 1 p.m. against No. 13 Truett McConnell.
