LAKELAND, Fla. --- Southeastern University got more than they bargained for as they host the Lady Gyrenes of Ave Maria Unviersity.

Both teams came out firing. Each side used pin-point passing to set up their hitters as the score went back and forth. Lexy Smith, Lexie Andric and Libby Welsh led the attack, each recording 2 kills. The heavily favored Southeastern Fire had a match on their hands. Ave Maria held a 10-8 lead as Jessica Schein had two digs and Andric and Hannah Wurster each recording a block. The Fire used a 4-0 run to take the lead at 16-14 and never gave it up. An ace and a serve receive error gave Southeastern the first set.

Momentum though, was in Ave Maria's favor. Led by the strong serving of Jessica Schein, The Lady Gyrenes jumped out to a 4-0 lead, forcing an early time out. But the timeout didn't stop Ave Maria as they scored out to 6-2. With the host, Southeastern Fire, up against the wall they slowly fought back. Using more offensive fire-power to pull the game back even at 12-12. The energy stayed with the Lady Gyrenes as they continued to battle. Back and forth the set went with Lexy Smith once again leading the charge, getting 4 kills in the set and putting two blocks back on Southwestern. Slowly the winds changed. The Southeastern Fire would take the momentum away from Ave Maria and closed out the second set, taking a two games to zero lead, propelling them into a dominant third and final set.

Southeastern, fueled by a nearly impenetrable blocking crew, built a quick lead that swiftly ballooned into a big lead. The Lady Gyrenes wouldn't go out without a fight, putting everything they had into stopping the constant barrage of blockers, creatively getting around them to score. In the end the Fire were just too much.

Head Coach Katie Latenser was very pleased with the effort from her team. "From the minute we stepped in the gym we brought a lot of positive energy. We are a much better team when we do that; it brings focus and communication, which are huge factors in winning games." Latenser said "We have more fun when we bring energy and that's what this game is all about. The girls took a great step forward with the first two sets tonight and I'm confident that we will continue to do that."

Lexy Smith and Lexie Andric finished with eight and seven kills, respectively. Monique Rivers and Jessica Schein had 7 digs a piece and Smith finished with three solo blocks.

The Lady Gyrenes host St. Thomas University on Saturday at 2pm in the Tom Gollisano Field House.