LAKELAND, Fla. -- SEU Women's Soccer secured its first Sun Conference Tournament title since 2021 on Thursday night, outlasting No. 3 Keiser 3–2 in a statistical battle between two of the NAIA's elite programs at SEU Soccer Field. The win also completed SEU's first regular-season and tournament sweep since 2020, capping a dominant run through conference play and positioning the Fire as a dangerous postseason contender.
The numbers reflected a matchup worthy of the rankings. Keiser finished with a 15–10 shot advantage, but Southeastern generated a more efficient 9–7 edge in shots on goal, converting three of those nine chances. The Fire also capitalized on set pieces, with two of the three goals directly involving free-kick situations—a difference-maker in a match where both teams fought for every inch of space in the attacking third.
SEU's early efficiency surfaced quickly. In the 4th minute, the Fire opened the scoring on their first shot of the match when
Ariadna Lozano elevated to meet an
Olivia Thomassy free-kick service, popping a header over KU goalkeeper Madison Priebe for a 1–0 lead. It marked Lozano's eighth goal of the season and Thomassy's third assist.
Keiser responded with mounting pressure, finishing the first half with an 8–4 shot advantage and generating three corners. The equalizer arrived in the 39th minute when Luisa Fontes converted off a sequence created by Blanca Bachi and Steingerthur Snorradottir, pulling KU level at 1–1. The Seahawks placed four shots on goal in the opening period, requiring SEU goalkeeper
Ella Sebree to make two saves.
Southeastern flipped the momentum immediately after halftime. In the 49th minute, SEU converted its second set piece of the night when
Abby Ripple drove a free kick into the box and
Sara Irurozki redirected it past Priebe for her 10th goal of the season. The Fire leaned on Irurozki throughout the match; her two shots on goal produced one finish and created consistent stress for the KU back line.
SEU stretched the lead to 3–1 in the 63rd minute on a sequence created from second-chance danger. After Keiser cleared a cross only partially,
Rebecca Laface settled the rebound out of the air with one touch and blasted a low shot inside the far post for her fifth goal of the season. Laface logged 73 minutes and recorded both a shot and shot on goal, converting the Fire's third high-quality chance of the night.
Keiser tightened the match again in the 73rd minute when Lauren Riley, the Seahawks' leading scorer, finished her 16th goal of the year off a cross from Ruby Vernon, cutting the deficit to 3–2. Riley and Fontes combined for seven of Keiser's 15 shots, including four of their seven on target.
The final minutes required SEU to defend under pressure. Sebree finished with five saves, including a critical stop on a header from Fontes in the 84th minute. The Fire backline helped SEU close out the win despite absorbing seven second-half shots from the Seahawks.
Now 13-2-3, SEU advances as the Sun Conference's automatic qualifier to the NAIA Women's Soccer National Championship First & Second Rounds, presented by Select Sport America. The Fire will learn their destination and opponent during the NAIA Selection Show on Friday, November 14, at 6 p.m. CT, entering the national bracket with a trophy and momentum behind them.
