Coastal Georgia bounced back in a big way Friday afternoon, evening its series with Keiser at one game apiece with a gutty 4-2 victory in Game 2 at Alumni Field. Emilia Clemons was outstanding in the circle and Brooke Perdue delivered the offensive punch as the Mariners improved to 34-9 on the season.
Keiser struck first in the bottom of the first, capitalizing on some aggressive baserunning as Faith Campos scored on an RBI single by Macy Schaaf to take a 1-0 lead. But Coastal Georgia answered immediately in the second when Perdue led off with a home run to left field to knot the game at one.
The Mariners took control in the third with a two-run frame that proved to be the difference. Emma Jones singled and Rily Andrews followed with a double to put two runners in scoring position. Rylee Mills then delivered an RBI single to score Jones, and Perdue added another RBI single to push the lead to 3-1. It was the kind of clutch, two-out hitting that has defined Coastal Georgia at its best this season.
Keiser pulled back within one in the fourth when Trinity Rohrer doubled home Jordan Brantley to make it 3-2, but Coastal Georgia responded in the fifth. Andrews singled and Mills followed with another single before Perdue came through again, lofting a sacrifice fly to center to score Andrews and push the Mariner advantage back to 4-2.
From there, Clemons was simply superb. After entering the game in the first inning, she went all seven frames, allowing just two earned runs on ten hits while keeping the Seahawk lineup off balance throughout. She did not issue a walk after the first inning and got the big outs when she needed them most, stranding multiple Keiser runners in the late innings to preserve the victory and improve her record to 11-2.
Perdue was the clear offensive star of the afternoon, finishing 2-for-2 with a home run, a sacrifice fly, and three RBI. Andrews went 2-for-4 with a double and two runs scored, Mills contributed two hits and an RBI, and Jones added two hits and a stolen base to keep the Mariner lineup churning throughout.
With the series now tied heading into Saturday's decisive Game 3, Coastal Georgia will look to finish the job tomorrow.