DAYTONA BEACH, Florida - The Embry-Riddle baseball team made it interesting late, but ultimately fell to the visiting Florida Southern Mocs on Friday night, 7-5. The Eagles (20-24, 8-17 SSC) hit back-to-back home runs in the ninth inning to cut a five-run deficit to just two, but the Mocs (27-18, 18-7) registered two strikeouts of the final two Eagle batters to emerge with the two-run victory. The Mocs jumped out early, scoring five runs in the first and the Eagles played the entire game from behind, at one point going scoreless over six straight innings.

Garrett Goodall (L, 3-4) lasted just 0.1 inning, getting one out and allowing five runs to score, four on two two-run homers, and Gunnar Harrison was called upon early to put out the fire. And that's exactly what he did, getting the final two outs of the first inning and then throwing four more innings, allowing just one unearned run against the Mocs, keeping the home team in the game.

ERAU got two runs back in the second when Robert Post doubled home Garrett Bogart, then scoring when Kevin Vittoria doubled him in, however, the Eagles left two on the bases in the frame, and did the same in the third and fourth against FSC starter Nathan Madej.

While Harrison locked down the Mocs, their only run against him coming thanks to an error in the top of the second, Madej did the same against ERAU, getting through five before Mitchell LeRoy relieved him to start the sixth.

With a 7-2 lead, LeRoy worked smoothly through the sixth, seventh and eighth innings, and while he was being matched by the Blue and Gold's Connor Dunnam, neither offense did much until the ninth.

Florida Southern managed to load the bases with two outs, but Dunnam, who worked the final three defensive innings for the Eagles, got a harmless fly ball to center to end the threat.

Vittoria started the bottom of the ninth with a single past the FSC third baseman that was lost in the lights, and Andrew Martinez clobbered his team-leading sixth homer of the year with a shot to right center. Jeremy Kennedy-Davis made it back-to-back homers for the Eagles two pitches later, driving a ball down the left field line and cutting the ERAU deficit to 7-5. But, LeRoy was able to strikeout both Josh Reynolds and Bogart to end the game and earning his first save of the year.

Kennedy-Davis finished 3-for-5 at the plate, while Vittoria and Bogart each collected to hits. Harrison, Tristan Harley and Dunnam tossed 8.2 innings, allowing only two runs (one earned) with 11 strikeouts between them.

The Eagles and Mocs meet again tomorrow at 1 p.m. for a DH.