BOCA RATON, Fla. (Interstat) — Jon Embury broke out of a brief slump with a three-hit, four-RBI performance, including a decisive two-run homer in the eighth inning, to lead the Florida Gulf Coast Eagles to an 8-6 victory over the Florida Atlantic Owls on Tuesday night at FAU Baseball Stadium.

The Eagles (22-13) pounded out 12 hits and survived a rocky start from their pitching staff to secure their second win over the Owls (17-19) this season, having also won 12-4 in Boca Raton on March 17.

The most important sequence of the game came in the top of the eighth inning, with FGCU clinging to a 6-4 lead. After Wilfred Gonzalez drew a leadoff walk against new pitcher Zach Kilby, Embury stepped in. The designated hitter, who was 0 for 4 in his previous game, drove a Kilby offering deep over the right-field fence for a two-run shot, providing critical insurance runs.

That blast proved essential moments later. The Owls had shown a relentless ability to answer Eagles’ scoring throughout the early innings. After Florida Atlantic erupted for four runs in the bottom of the first, highlighted by a two-run homer from John Martinez, to immediately erase an early FGCU lead, the Eagles responded with a five-run second inning. Embury sparked that rally with a two-run single, and Evan Dempsey followed with another two-run single.

Every time the Eagles built a cushion, the Owls chipped away. They pulled to within 6-4 in the second, and then in the sixth inning, Eli Small delivered a two-run single off reliever Ashton Pocol to cut the deficit to 8-6, setting the stage for Embury’s late heroics.

Following Embury’s homer, the Eagles’ bullpen slammed the door. Elliot Cadieux-Lanoue, Pocol, Preston Rogers, Hyatt Richardson and Ryan Rushing combined for five scoreless innings of relief, allowing no hits and striking out six. Cadieux-Lanoue was particularly effective with two perfect frames after entering in the fourth.

Embury finished 3 for 4 with the homer, four RBIs and three runs scored. Dempsey added three hits, including a solo homer in the sixth, and drove in three runs.

For the Owls, Martinez’s first-inning homer accounted for two of their six hits. Starter Bryan Boully recorded only one out before being lifted, forcing Florida Atlantic to use eight pitchers in the game. Reilly Witmer provided 1 1/3 scoreless innings of relief.

The win improved FGCU to 9-4 on the road this season. The Eagles will begin a three-game series at Queens University of Charlotte on Friday. Florida Atlantic opens a home conference series against Tulane on Friday.

The result defied the pregame projections from Interstat, whose game simulator had predicted a 4-3 Eagles victory, while its ELO rating system gave the Owls a 52.2% probability to win.