LAKELAND – Florida Southern defeated its second ranked opponent of the season as it took down 16th-ranked Grand Valley State 12-6 Sunday afternoon at Henley Field.

The Moccasins (8-8) returned to .500 thanks to an offensive explosion in the final two innings that saw the entire lineup dig into the box. In addition, they also put up four runs in each of the frames on seven combined hits.

The game started off oddly for FSC's starter Brady Arenson (Glenview, Ill.) who surrendered three of his seven hits in the first two innings; all coming after retiring the first two batters of each inning. Arenson and the Mocs would come out of both unharmed, however, and with a lead.

After leaving the bases loaded in the top of the first, the Mocs were able to get their own offense going, putting up two runs in the inning that started with a leadoff single by senior left fielder Kyle Richards (Groton, Conn.). After a fielder's choice and a single by senior third baseman Chris Dennis (Rockledge, Fla.), senior first baseman Blake Swann (Live Oak, Fla.) smacked a two-out, two-run double down the line to open the scoring. Unfortunately for FSC, the Lakers' (5-4) starter, Patrick Kelly, would settle down after that retiring nine consecutive batters and only giving up one hit and one walk through the next four innings.

It would not be until the third inning when GVSU tied the game. The inning started with the first four Lakers reaching base, including a bases-loaded, two-run double to left by Josh Griffith. Defense stepped up after that, making two key outs at home to keep from relinquishing the lead. After a 3-1 pitch got away from senior catcher Joey Miller (Sarasota, Fla.), he was able to recover and flip the ball to Arenson in time to catch the runner from third trying to score on the pass ball. The next batter would hit a swinging bunt that was fielded by the Mocs' hurler and flipped home to retire Griffith.

Jamie Potts would give Grand Valley State its first lead of the game with a homerun to lead off the fifth inning. After a fly out to right following the homer, Arenson's day would be finished, and sophomore Craig Savage (Apopka, Fla.) would come in for relief. Arenson threw 4.1 innings while giving up three runs (all earned) on seven hits while walking three and striking out one. Savage came in and retired the next two batters, but the Lakers were able to manufacture another run the following inning, making the score 4-2. Savage would retire 11 of the 16 batters he faced, and added a third victory to his spotless record on the season. He went 3.2 innings and surrendered one run (earned) on three hits while allowing two free passes and fanning two.

The Mocs would use their two-run deficit as motivation like GVSU did earlier in the game, and tied the game at four apiece in the bottom of the frame. The rally would start with a one-out triple by the junior designated hitter Jhalan Jackson (Winter Haven, Fla.), who was driven in by a groundout by Swann for his third of four RBIs on the day. With two outs and the bases empty, back-to-back singles to short by redshirt junior right fielder Dominic Brugnoni (St. Clair Shores, Mich.) and junior second baseman Shawn Sanders (Citra, Fla.) would set the stage for Miller to bring FSC even with a double to left field.

After the seventh inning stretch, senior shortstop Casey Eddinger (Crawfordville, Fla.) led off with a single down the third baseline, and advanced into scoring position on his second stolen base of the year. A walk from Richards and a sacrifice bunt by junior center fielder Sam Machonis (Tampa, Fla.) put ducks on the pond for Dennis, who plated both runners with a single up the middle. After advancing to second on a wild pitch, Dennis scored on another single up the middle, this one from Jackson. The transfer from Hillsborough Community College made his way to third thanks to a Brugnoni single and a walk by Sanders. He would score on a fielder's choice by Miller.

Sending 10 batters to bat that inning was so much fun that the Mocs decided to try it again in the bottom of the eighth and sent nine batters to the plate. Richards led things off by getting hit by a pitch, and, after an error by the second baseman and a single to right; the bases were loaded for the team's leader in homeruns and RBIs. Jackson would come through for two more RBIs on a single to center. Swann would bring in one more on a single up the middle, and the Mocs' scoring would be capped with a sac fly from Miller.

Senior Casey Eskew (Sarasota, Fla.) came in for the final inning and sealed the victory after giving up two runs (none earned) on two hits and striking out the final batter of the game.

Florida Southern returns to action on Wednesday, March 11 for a game against Winona State before its SSC-opening series against top-ranked Tampa next weekend. Opening pitch against Winona State is scheduled for 6 p.m.