SARASOTA, Fla. - Despite taking nearly three hours, the College of Coastal Georgia softball team defeated the New College of Florida Mighty Banyan by a final of 11-7 in game three of their Sun Conference series

Game three of the series was a far cry from the defensive battles of yesterday as both teams combined for 18 runs and 29 hits as CCGA hung on for the series win in Sarasota. 

Both sides came away with a run in the first inning of the game, both coming in different forms. For the Mariners (31-13, 12-9 SUN), they used a leadoff walk from Kaitlyn Carolino to work her around to third, allowing Ella Romano to sac fly her in to score. On the other side, the Mighty Banyan (15-25, 8-15 SUN) got one run on four hits in the first inning off of starting pitcher Emilia Clemons. A leadoff double that advanced to third on a wild pitch scored on a single from Garcia, and back-to-back singles from Strauss and Waters loaded the bases, but a lineout ended the threat as Clemons stranded the bases loaded to keep the game tied after one. 

In the second, CCGA got another run, this time off the bat of Mackenzie Southerland as she belted her second home run of the season out to right field as the Mariners took a 2-1 lead. 

The third inning was a score fest for both sides as both teams scored three runs in their halves of the inning. CCGA got two hits in the inning, both RBI singles from Avery Callaway and Southerland, and used an error from the Mighty Banyan defense to take a commanding 5-1 lead into the bottom half. 

Just as quickly as they built their lead, NCF took control right back with three hits and two errors on the inning to bring the deficit back to one as the game was 5-4 going into the fourth. 

In the fifth, the Mariners inched out further with one run in the inning, an RBI double from Mills, taking a 6-4 lead into the bottom of the inning. 

Now with the Mariners pitching staff rolling, the offense came through one again in the top of the sixth. Brooke Perdue started the inning with a leadoff single and stole second, moving to third on a single from Callaway two batters later. Once again, Southerland came through, this time with a 2 RBI double to make the score 8-4. Later in the inning, Maddy Lee walked and Emma Jones singled to load the bases with two outs for Mills. CCGA was unable to add on as Mills flew out to deep left center, but the damage had been done as the Mariners needed just six more outs for the game three win. 

Those six outs proved to be more challenging to get, however, as NCF responded in the bottom of the sixth inning with three runs on four hits, making the score 8-7 going into the final frame. 

Needing an answer to the Mighty Banyan offense, that's exactly what CCGA got in the top of the seventh. In the inning, Perdue led off with a single, and with Alyssa Haggerty running, she stole second for an early runner in scoring position. She would later steal third and Callaway walked, bringing Southerland back to the plate. The sophomore came through once again with her second home run of the game, this time a three run blast, to give CCGA an 11-7 lead in the final inning. 

The momentum proved to be enough as Collins worked a 1-2-3 bottom of the seventh to secure the game and series for CCGA.

Southerland finished 4-5 from the plate with two home runs, two runs scored, a double, and a new school record seven RBI's in the contest. The Upatoi native is now the career leader in single game RBI's breaking a record that was tied between four former and present Mariners. Lee, Callaway, Mills, and Carolino all also finished with two hits each. 

Collins, who took over for Clemons after an inning and a third, picks up her 10th win on the season going 5.2 innings allowing seven hits, six runs, one walk, and one strikeout. 

The Mariners return home on Tuesday to take on the Georgia Gwinnett Grizzlies in their final non-conference action of the regular season. First pitch is set for 1:00 p.m. from CCGA Softball Field.