WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – For the second time in three games, the Thomas University flag football team battled a lightning delay of nearly two hours, putting together a game-winning score in the final minute to defeat the Keiser Seahawks 19-18 Thursday afternoon at Keiser Multi-Purpose Field to become the first-ever flag football team to win in West Palm Beach.
 
TU (10-1, 6-1 SUN) managed to score on its opening drive before struggling offensively for the rest of the game.  Junior Quarterback Shelby Hartley finished the day completing 8-of-13 for 63 yards and one passing touchdown.  While Freshman Kiana Acol had six carries for 13 yards, the Crestview, Fla. native made the most of her limited aerial attack, going 3-for-4 throwing 20 yards with one touchdown and one interception.
 
On a day where the offense was subdued by the Seahawks (6-2, 5-2 SUN), it was the Night Hawks' defense that stepped up and made the big plays that led to the critical win and regular season series sweep over KU.  Sophomore Janae Scott made 10 flag and a 48-yard interception return for a touchdown.  Freshman Si'Naya Glover once again brought her best against a top-tier team, recording two flag pulls with three pass breakups and a pick.
 
Keiser began the game with possession but was idle on its opening drive after a personal foul on the first play of the game contributed to a three-and-out drive.  On the ensuing possession, an 11-yard rush by Acol set up the first touchdown of the game with an eight-yard score from Acol to Graduate Brittney Delva for a 6-0 lead.
 
KU's next possession would see one first down before Jazmin Rhoden threw an erred pass picked off by Scott, returning it 48 yards to extend the Night Hawks' lead 13-0 after a successful conversion from Acol to Freshman Margarita Peña.
 
On the final play of the first quarter, the Green & White forced Keiser to punt from their own red zone returning it five yards before a KU Holding penalty tacked ten extra yards to set up TU at the Seahawks' 26.  
 
The start of the second quarter did not go well for Thomas, as Acol threw her lone interception to KU's Maria Vega, who returned it 26 yards to set up the Seahawks in good field position.  As Keiser drove into the TU red zone for the first time in the game, the Thomas defense would not buckle, stopping the Seahawks six yards shy of pay dirt.
 
With just under three minutes remaining in the first half, Keiser appeared to be in trouble when Rhoden threw her second interception of the day before the Seahawks got it right back on the very next play with a Sydney Woodman pick that set KU up inside the red zone at TU's 17 right at the two-minute warning.
 
With the final possession of the half, Keiser used the entire two minutes to put together a 5-yard connection from Rhoden to Kennedy Foster on 4th and goal to head into the locker room trailing Thomas 13-6.
 
After a scoreless third quarter, the Green & White found themselves in trouble after Hartley was sacked on a 3rd & 1 play that forced TU to punt from their own 9.
 
KU wasted no time on the following possession, as Rhoden and Foster connected for a second score on a 29-yard strike.  Thomas made up for the intermediate play by denying the extra point from Keiser to stay in front 13-12.
 
After TU went three-and-out, Keiser appeared to be in position to take the lead after an Emma Wagenman 4-yard reception brought the Seahawks back into TU territory.  On the next play, Rhoden underestimated Glover on a one-on-one matchup with Foster, throwing her third pick to the native of Bradenton, Fla. who returned it to the Night Hawk 31-yard line.
 
With 4:09 remaining and a one-point lead, Thomas gambled by electing to take as much time off the clock with running plays, forcing Keiser to burn all three of its timeouts to have 2:13 on the clock and possession at the TU 35.
 
The Seahawks immediately took advantage, as a pass to Allyson Goolsby paired with a TU Holding penalty brought KU to the 17 before play was halted due to the lightning delay at the 1:43 mark.  The reset was all Keiser needed, as Rhoden's 17-yard scamper to the end zone put Keiser in front for the first time in the game.
 
With 1:36 left, Thomas proceeded to drive down the field 66 yards for the game-winning score. Thomas would come in clutch, as Hartley found Freshman Nakerra Brown on an inside slant route to put the Night Hawks back in front 19-18 with 21 seconds left after a good Acol rush conversion was nullified due to a tripping-the-rusher call.
 
The Seahawks attempted to march down the gridiron, but there was too little time as Keiser fell 20 yards shy of the end zone before time expired, giving Thomas the 19-18 win and the team's tenth, overall win.
 
TU by the Numbers
3:        Interceptions
6:        Games with 3+ touchdowns
8:        Straight wins
15:      Rushing yards allowed
18:      Points allowed
19:      Points scored
90:      Total yards of Offense
100:    Overall Head Coaching wins for Chelsea Parmer
 
Thomas returns home April 14th to host Florida Memorial, with kickoff slated for 4 p.m.
 
For up-to-date information on this game and other TU Athletics, visit http://www.TUNightHawks.com. Stay up-to-date with news, scores, photos, game summaries, play-by-play, and feature stories of your TU women's flag team by following them via Twitter and/or Instagram at @NightHawksWFlag.