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When is a sprint also a marathon? Just ask the South Fort Myers Senior League All-Stars.

They needed only one day to take care of business in the Section 6 tournament, but it took nearly the entire day to do so.

South opened the tournament by edging Golden Gate American, 9-8, in an 11-inning sweatfest that lasted nearly four hours under an unforgiving morning sun that churned into an even less friendly one in the early afternoon.

After enduring rain delays, South clinched the championship with a 9-7 win against Northport. The game ended at about 9:30 p.m., or more than a dozen hours after South first took the field at Golden Gate Community Park.

The reward for South will be a trip to the state tournament that starts Friday night just a few miles from their home field. Games will be played at Sam Fleishman Regional Sports Complex and Bishop Verot High School in Fort Myers.

“We’re very happy it’s in our backyard. It’s a tremendous advantage,” said South manager Felix Menendez, who is assisted by coaches Gary Toops and Mark Huff.

South, whose roster includes a few players that won a state championship at the Junior level last year, sported plenty of offense in the clincher against Northport. Brian Mackin led the attack with three hits. But it was the sharp leather that impressed Menendez.

“Sensational plays by Sam Toops at shortstop and Antonio Baragan at second base were difference-makers,” said Menendez.

Also earning praise from Menendez was catcher Luke Smith, who was the team’s iron man behind the plate. Smith, one of the team’s top pitchers, caught all 18 innings on the long, hot day.

“The poor kid could barely walk by the end of the day,” said Menendez.

Winning pitcher Mike Menendez teamed with Mackin and Wesley Fiorillo on the mound to hold off Northport, which trailed 9-1 at one point.

In the opener, Toops limited Golden Gate to one hit through six-plus innings, but the hosts managed to rally from a 7-4 late innings deficit to knot the game.

South’s Carlos Sosa delivered a clean two-run single up the middle that scored Toops and Nick LaVally in the top of the 11th. Sosa, who had relieved Toops in the sixth, then survived a shaky bottom of the inning. Golden Gate’s Cory Gariepy was thrown out at the plate following a RBI double by Jamie Bizbub with one out.

Sosa got the final out on a grounder to help keep South’s perfect season intact. South, which played as the league’s only senior team during the regular season, has yet to lose this year.