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COLUMBUS – There was drama at Burger King Stadium for the second straight night, as the eighth-ranked Columbus State University baseball team scored three in the ninth to secure a doubleheader sweep of Francis Marion on Saturday.
 
Columbus State (32-7, 15-5 PBC) took the opening game 10-3 before the come-from-behind theatrics scored the Cougars a 12-11 victory in the nightcap.
 
"We've said it before, but this group doesn't panic," head coach Greg Appleton said. "We didn't have our best at any point this weekend, but these guys always think they're going to win regardless of the score and tonight they fought their way to two more wins."
 
The Cougars are on the road for four games next week, starting with Wednesday at Auburn Montgomery. First pitch is scheduled for 6 p.m.
 
Game One
 
Francis Marion scored the opening run with a single in the second inning, but the Cougars got their offense rolling in the bottom half.
 
Drew Webb delivered a clutch two-out single on the seventh pitch of his at bat that scored Robert Brooks and Chase Brown to push the Cougars in front. Gunar Drinnen then dumped a ball into right-center to make it a 3-1 game.
 
Webb added another RBI on a sacrifice fly in the fourth and Grant Berry touched the plate on a passed ball in the fifth to give CSU a four-run cushion
 
The Patriots cut the lead in half with a two-run homer in the sixth, however CSU would put the game away one inning later.
 
Brooks gave the Cougars an insurance run with a RBI single in the seventh, but the big blow of the inning came three batters later. Brown launched his first long ball of the season with the bases loaded to secure the win.
 
Perez Knowles (5-1) struck out 11 in six innings of work for his fifth win of the season. Sheridan Coy, Jalen Latta and Drew Reeves combined to throw the final three innings.
 
Game Two
 
Columbus State found itself in a big hole early in game two, trailing 6-1 heading into the bottom of the fourth inning.
 
Frank Wager turned on a 2-0 pitch to start the CSU fourth and rifled a ball over the wall in right to kick off a big inning. Following two walks and a single, Webb tucked a ball inside the left field line to bring three runs across the plate and get the Cougars back within one.
 
Three batters later, Mason McClellan scorched a double into the left-centerfield gap to score two more and give CSU a 7-6 lead.
 
The lead lasted for just an inning though, as Francis Marion took advantage of some shaky defense by the Cougars to plate five in the sixth.
 
CSU chipped away at the lead in the seventh with Wager's second home run of the day and a solo shot from Grant Berry. However, the Cougars entered the bottom of the ninth down 11-9.
 
Wager struck again to lead off the ninth, hitting his third home run of the game to pull the Cougars within one. With a runner on first and two outs, Brown sent a flyball down the left field line that appeared to end the game. The ball bounced out of the diving left fielder's glove though to keep the game alive.
 
Webb then took a four-pitch walk and Austin Collins pinch hit with the bases loaded and two outs. Collins rolled a groundball to the shortstop, but the throw sailed over the first baseman allowing the tying and winning runs to score.
 
Wager was 3-for-5 in the game with the three homers. He becomes the 14^th player in Peach Belt Conference history to homer three times in a conference game.
 
Tyler Cadenhead (6-0) worked three shutout innings in relief to tally the victory.