TAMPA, Fla.— The Southeastern Fire, four-time defending champions of both the regular season and postseason tournament, have been tabbed by the league’s coaches as the 2019-20 favorite in The Sun Conference women’s basketball preseason poll.
 
Southeastern received nine of 10 first-place votes (coaches are not allowed to vote for their own teams) and a total of 81 points to finish well ahead of second-place St. Thomas (62 points) in the balloting.  Coastal Georgia (61), Ave Maria (60) and Florida Memorial (57) were next in line as they joined St. Thomas in a close battle for the second-through-fifth positions in the preseason poll.
 
The Fire capped off a 31-3 season with the program’s first appearance in the NAIA Division II championship game last March, losing a tight 67-59 battle to top-seeded Concordia (Neb.). SEU swept its way to The Sun Conference regular-season title with a perfect 18-0 record and then captured the league’s conference tournament title with a pair of decisive victories over Florida Memorial (76-60) and Coastal Georgia (90-66).
 
Southeastern’s recent dominance in the Sun has the Fire carrying a 54-game regular-season conference winning streak into the 2019-20 campaign. SEU last lost a Sun game on Feb. 10, 2016 at Thomas. The Fire has also won its last eight straight TSC tournament games over the past four seasons.
 
The Fire’s quest for a fifth consecutive Sun title will be led by its lone returning starter, 6-6 senior center Marlena Schmidt, who averaged 11.3 points per game and a team-best 7.3 rebounds per contest a year ago.
 
"It is an honor to be recognized by the coaches in the league to start the season,” said Southeastern’s fourth-year head coach Tim Hays, who owns a 90-5 record in his three seasons in Lakeland. “We know that nothing is determined until the games are played but we believe we have built a standard of expectation and preparation that has helped us stay consistent year in and year out no matter what our team looks like.”
 
Following the top five in the coaches’ poll are Keiser with 42 points, Johnson & Wales (28), Warner and Webber International (21) and Thomas (17).
 
  
2019-20 Sun Conference Women’s Basketball Preseason Coaches’ Poll (first-place votes)
Southeastern                            81 (9)
St. Thomas                              62 (1)
Coastal Georgia                     61
Ave Maria                               60 
Florida Memorial                    57
Keiser                                      42
Johnson & Wales                    28
Warner                                                21
Webber International              21
Thomas                                  17