GULFPORT, Miss. —
Neriah Lee tripled home the go-ahead run and freshman
Amya Ramos followed with a walk-off RBI single in the bottom of the 11th inning Wednesday night as Florida A&M rallied past Southern 5-4 in a back-and-forth battle at Gulfport Sportsplex.
The Rattlers (30-19) overcame a shaky start — surrendering three runs in the first three innings — by mounting a comeback that stretched across 3 hours and 59 minutes, ultimately breaking through after the Jaguars (33-14) took a 4-3 lead in the top of the 11th.
FAMU jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the opening frame on a sacrifice fly by
Amari Brown and an RBI single by
Keeleigh Spooner. Southern responded quickly, using a triple by Asia George to set the table for a Laila Clark RBI double in the first and adding a run in each of the second and third innings to build a 3-2 lead.
The Rattlers answered in the fifth when Lee scored on a Brown sacrifice fly, knotting the game at 3-3. From there, both pitchers settled in for a grinding, scoreless stretch through innings six through 10.
Southern finally broke through in the 11th when Ariel Burton's single to the pitcher scored Abigail Mitchell — who had reached on a wild pitch — giving the Jaguars a 4-3 advantage and threatening to end FAMU's night.
But the Rattlers refused to fold.
Aniya Canty reached on a first-base error to start the bottom of the 11th, and Lee — FAMU's leadoff hitter — drilled a triple to left center that cleared the bases and plated Canty to tie the game at 4-4. Two batters later, Ramos delivered a single to left field that brought Lee home with the winning run, prompting a celebration on the Gulfport Sportsplex infield.
Lee was the offensive catalyst all night, going 4-for-5 with a walk, a triple, an RBI and three runs scored. Ramos, inserted as a pinch-hitter in the fifth, went 1-for-3 with two walks and the decisive RBI.
Jamison Townsend added four hits and a double, while
Amari Brown drove in two with a pair of sacrifice flies.
On the mound, senior
Samantha Smith was nothing short of extraordinary. She went the distance — all 11 innings — allowing 17 hits and four runs (two earned) while striking out seven. Smith gutted through a loaded-bases situation in the eighth,
navigated Southern's persistent baserunning and stranded numerous threats before outlasting Southern starter Aaliyah Zabala. Smith improved to 10-7.
Zabala took the loss, dropping to 16-5. She gave up five runs on 13 hits across 11 innings, striking out nine.
FAMU is back in action Thursday at 4:30 p.m. EST vs. Texas Southern. A win would put the Rattlers in the SWAC Championship.
