SAINT LEO, Fla.- It was a suspenseful ninth inning this Friday night, as the No. 18 Saint Leo baseball team was able to hang on for a 9-8 victory over the visiting Florida Southern Moccasins in the first of the three-game Sunshine State Conference series at Thomas B. Southard Stadium.

With the victory, the Lions move to 29-8 on the season and 10-6 in the SSC while the Mocs drop to 15-17 overall with a conference record of 4-9.

Looking like their early season form, seven Green and Gold batters recorded multi-hit games. Junior shortstop Taylor Perez went 3-for-5 on the night and led the Lions with 3 RBI. Two of Perez's RBI came in the Saint Leo five-run fourth inning when he singled to left field, scoring Alex Mata and Jordan Taylor.

The Mocs jumped out to a 2-0 lead after the top of the third. Shawn Sanders tripled in the first and would be plated on a Chris Dennis groundout. Then again in the third, Sanders would score on a Dennis single that took a tough bounce past left fielder Nick Perez.

In the bottom of the third, sophomore Dylan Harris hit a sac fly to deep right to score junior Zach Daley cutting the lead to one, 2-1. In his starting debut, Daley from Northfield Falls, Vermont went 3-for-5 and scored two runs.

Saint Leo continued scoring in the middle innings by adding five runs in the fourth, two in the fifth, and one more in the sixth to take a 9-4 lead into the final third of the game. One run in the fifth came on a towering fly ball that proceeded to clear the left field fence for an Alex Mata home run, his fourth of the season.

Junior Michael Dunnigan earned his seventh win of the season after spreading five hits and two runs over 5.0 innings pitched. Dunnigan recorded four strikeouts on the night.

Senior captain Tyrone Miller spelled reliever Brandon Mumaw in the eighth with a 9-6 lead. In the ninth, Jhalen Jackson and Chris Dennis hit back-to-back solo home runs to pull the Mocs within one, 9-8. Miller however, shut down the Florida Southern rally attempt to record his sixth save of the season and second in back-to-back appearances. He ended with three strikeouts in 1.2 innings pitched.

Ben Richardson occupied the mound for Florida Southern tonight pitching a full 7.0 innings giving up 16 hits and 9 runs. The loss drops Richardson to 3-6 on the season in 11 appearances. Lefty A.J. Smith pitched one inning of relief holding the Lions batters to just two hits.

The Lions and the Mocs will continue the conference battle with a doubleheader beginning at 1:00 p.m. Saturday, April 11. Seven Lions will be recognized prior to the first pitch for Saint Leo baseball's senior day.

For more information on the Saint Leo baseball program, visit SaintLeoLions.com.  Fans can also stay up-to-date on the latest Lions news by following Saint Leo Athletics on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube.