Facing the sixth-placed Swans, the Lions were forced to fend off a late charge at Princess Park, but held their nerve to walk away with a 51-49 victory that leaves them well positioned in third place on the ladder as finals draw closer.
It was Seymour that held the early advantage despite a very evenly contested first quarter, with both sides enjoying mini runs to edge slightly ahead, before three straight goals to Ruby Martin broke the deadlock and saw the Lions enter the first break ahead 14-11.
It was another see-sawing contest in the second quarter. Seymour pressed the advantage early to lead by six goals, but the Swans were well and truly up for the fight, with the scoreline ebbing and flowing. The home side drew within two goals late in the half, before Seymour again pulled away to lead by four at the main break.
Seymour watched its lead vanish in the blink of an eye in the third term, with the Swans drawing level in the first two minutes.
It was goal-for-goal from there, with neither side holding more than a one-goal lead for the rest of the quarter, and given just how tight it had been up until that point, it was fitting that scores were tied at 38-38 heading into the final term.
Just as it had in the third term, Shepparton scored consecutive goals to start the fourth to hold a two-goal lead. However, Seymour quickly levelled at 40-40, with the two sides trading goals until Chelsea McDonald drained two in a row to give the Swans a 49-47 lead with two minutes remaining.
Under immense pressure, the Lions turned to a familiar face, with Ellie Fuhrmeister stepping up in the dying moments, capitalising on her side’s work across the court to pour in the final four goals of the contest, erasing the deficit and handing Seymour a hard-fought two-goal triumph.
Sarah Szczykulski was named Seymour’s best in the win, providing a real presence in defence, while Courtney Aldous and Lucy Zotti were instrumental through the midcourt and defensive end, respectively.
The win improves Seymour’s record to 10-2-1 through 13 rounds, one-and-a-half games clear of fourth-placed Mooroopna and four-and-a-half games clear of the sixth-placed Swans.
With five games remaining, Seymour is on the cusp of locking in a finals position, which it can make a certainty with a win against Mansfield on Saturday at Kings Park.
