Survivor featured the Niu Nai tribe voting out Mary Zheng instead of Joe Hunter during the Season 48 episode that aired Wednesday night on CBS.

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The Niu Nai tribe voted out Mary, a 31-year-old substance abuse counselor from Montgomery Village, MD, who currently resides in Philadelphia, PA, through a 6-1 vote at Tribal Council on Night 21 of Survivor 48 instead of Joe, a 45-year-old fire captain from Vacaville, CA, who currently resides in West Sacramento, CA.

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"I just got voted out but I'm very proud of myself. I fought the way I knew best until the bitter end," Mary said in her final words.

"But I had been living on borrowed time because I think everybody was a little bit scared to sit next to me in the Final 3, because they knew I was the last Vula member standing. So I have no regrets!"

The Survivor broadcast began on Night 19 with Mary talking about how she had to crawl out of a pit "all over again."

Mary kept making -- and losing -- friends and allies, and so she said it was a "demoralizing" experience for her.

Mary, however, wasn't going to give up, and so she decided to talk to Kamilla Karthigesu, a 31-year-old software engineer from Toronto, Canada, who currently resides in Foster City, CA, and Mitch Guerra, a 34-year-old P.E. coach from Waco, TX, about targeting Joe next.

Kamilla wanted to break up his powerful alliance with Eva Erickson, a 24-year-old PhD candidate from Eagan, MN, who currently resides in Providence, RI, and Mary explained how no one wanted to sit next to Joe in the end.

Kamilla said she liked Mary's plan but she'd have to get Kyle Fraser, a 31-year-old attorney from Roanoke, VA, who currently resides in Brooklyn, NY, and Shauhin Davari, a 38-year-old debate professor from East Bay, CA, who currently resides in Costa Mesa, CA, onboard.

Mitch was also hoping to make this move so Joe wouldn't "run away with this game."

On Day 20, Joe and Shauhin spoke about how they needed to get rid of Mary and then they'd definitely have the numbers. The core four was Joe, Eva, Shauhin and Kyle, with Kamilla and Mitch as add-ons.

Mary was clearly on the outs, but the solid alliance of four didn't know how close Kyle and Kamilla were.

Kyle was therefore waffling on what to do.

"Joe has been a really strong player, and one could say that Joe has been in control," Kyle told the Survivor cameras.

"He's also got a really strong No. 1 in Eva, who seems to have every single advantage in this game... At 7 right now, it's such a crucial point in this game where I have to think, 'Should I take a shot at Joe? Is this move the right idea? Is it the right time?'"

Mary then asked Kyle to use her as a number to get rid of Joe, which Kyle found "tempting" since he could take a shot at Joe and still have the numbers on his side.

But Kyle explained to Mary how he felt very emotionally connected to Joe and Eva.

"I don't think that I'm in a position to make a move emotionally and strategically against them," Kyle told Mary.

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Kyle said Mary didn't need to know that he was thinking about taking out Joe because he couldn't trust her entirely. But Kyle confirmed in a Survivor confessional that he was thinking about this every minute.

Mary took Kyle's response as a "no," and so she angrily ate what appeared to be the tribe's last coconut. Mary complained about how she was on the bottom and no one was going to pick her to eat at the Reward.

"It's 100 percent hurting her game!" Kamilla vented of Mary. "No one is going to keep around a person who doesn't know proper coconut etiquette!"

Kamilla then confirmed how Kyle was still her No. 1, and he apologized to her for being a little "wishy washy."

Kyle told the cameras how he'd been with Kamilla since the start of the game but he had deep conversations with Joe and Eva that would making voting either of them out a huge betrayal. Kyle had been playing the middle for a while, and the complication of that finally caught up with him.

"I will either be betraying Kamilla, or I'll be betraying Joe, Eva and Shauhin," Kyle told the Survivor cameras in tears. "I don't want to hurt people, even if it's for the benefit of my family."

The castaways then learned it was time for a journey, and although that person may potentially lose his or her vote in order to receive an advantage, everyone wanted to go.

The tribe therefore drew rocks to determine who would go on the boat, and Eva won the opportunity. Eva was pumped and nervous at the same time because if she lost her vote, it could be a 3-3 tie at Tribal Council, which could mess up her alliance's plans.

Eva had to lose her vote on the journey in order to play a game, but she knew she could earn it back.

Eva was instructed to stack tiles in a circle while standing on a balance beam and only using her foot to spin the disk. If Eva was able to complete four levels, her vote would be safe.

If she could complete eight levels, she would earn the "Knowledge is Power" advantage. Eva said she was the perfect person for this journey since someone could've stolen her idol -- which everyone already knew about -- had someone else won it.

If tiles fell at any point, Eva could race to restack them. When the timer ran out, if Eva didn't have at least four levels completed, she would lost her vote at the next Tribal Council.

Eva decided to take on the task, even though she already had an idol and "Safety Without Power" advantage.

Once Eva accomplished four layers, she questioned whether she should keep going. Eva was power hungry, and so she chose not to quit and go for the eight layers.

However, once she stacked a couple more tiles, she realized she could be letting down her team, and so she decided to stop the challenge to protect her allies. Eva said she wanted to make the Final 4 with the players she had come to adore and trust.

Once Eva returned to camp, she told the truth.

Later on, Mary spoke to Shauhin about how the tribe was playing to "outloyal" each other when that was not even criteria for winning the game of Survivor. Shauhin knew he could take out Joe now, but he also told the Survivor cameras that he had played a better game than Joe.

Shauhin wanted a taste of being in the driver's seat, but he also acknowledged how that's the "scariest place to be" in Survivor.

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On Day 21, the Final 7 met Survivor host Jeff Probst for the next Individual Immunity Challenge.

Jeff explained each castaway must push a Survivor wheelbarrow over a series of obstacles while balancing a vase containing a key. Along the way, they had to add a second vase and cross more obstacles. Once at the finish, the players would use those keys to unlock the pieces to an arch puzzle that read "UNFORGETTABLE."

The first person to win would receive immunity and earn an automatic spot in the Final 6. One of the losers would become the twelfth person voted out of the game and the fifth member of Survivor's jury.

The Survivor castaways were also playing for Reward in the form of sushi, chicken teriyaki, noodles, iced tea and chocolate cake for dessert.

Mitch and Kamilla were in the lead once they began working on the puzzle. Joe thought he had it, but his phrase didn't make sense.

Kyle then guessed "unforgettable" correctly, but he had a couple of letters out of place. Just as Kamilla was about to win, her blocks fell.

In the end, Jeff thought Joe had won immunity because Joe had spelled "unforgettable" correctly, but one block -- featuring an eye -- was showing the wrong color on one side. Jeff therefore corrected his announcement and named Kamilla the winner of Individual Immunity.

Kamilla was shocked and thrilled, and Joe enthusiastically applauded her.

Kamilla picked Mitch to join her on Reward, and then she got to select one more person -- and that person was Eva.

Mary broke down crying after the challenge because she felt like she was on the bottom. Mary said she was proud of Kamilla but her position in the game hurt more than ever before.

Kamilla, feeling strong and secure, told the Survivor cameras that she was ready to take Joe out before it's too late.

But Eva made it clear during Reward that she thought everyone was voting out Mary that night. Eva also announced that she was going to play her idol at Final 6 or give it to Joe if she won immunity at that point.

"Joe and Eva are a duo, and since Joe lost the challenge, we have a clear shot at him right now," Kamilla shared in a Survivor confessional.

Back at camp, Mary took off pretending to look for an idol. Joe and Shauhin were a little
worried, but Joe asked his allies not to panic.

Meanwhile, Kyle's decisions were weighing heavily on him. Kyle confessed to Kamilla that he's a lawyer and not a teacher.

"He's a great liar, but honestly, I don't care," Kamilla shared in a Survivor confessional.

"I like Kyle so much that I want one of us sitting at Final 3. We are truly No. 1's and I only want one of us walking away with a million dollars."

Kamilla continued to prove to Kyle that she was with him, and so he still considered her his No. 1.

"Both me and Kyle know we're going to turn on Joe, it's just been a matter of when," Kamilla explained to the Survivor cameras.

Before Tribal Council, Mary announced how she was going to write his name down that night. Joe called Mary a "smart" and "advanced" player, and so he began to fear she had an idol.

Joe therefore asked Kyle and Mitch to throw one vote somewhere else, but the guys didn't budge. Kyle assured Joe that he was going to be fine, but Joe said they probably would've reacted differently had they been on the chopping block.

Shauhin also told Joe to relax because if they threw a vote on someone else, it would show his cards and who would be next. Shauhin complained about how Joe was paranoid because people had written his name down twice and he was cool as a cucumber.

Shauhin wondered if Joe, in a paranoid state, would flip on him -- and if this would be the right time to send Joe packing as a result.

At Tribal Council that night, the castaways talked about how they were fighting to win for their loved ones, and it was an emotional night.

Eva also announced how she still saw an "us" in the Survivor game and she still wasn't thinking about herself. And Kyle declared how timing was so important in the game.

Shauhin told Jeff that he was going to put himself in the best position to win.

It then became time to vote, and Jeff subsequently read the votes aloud in the following order: Mary, Joe, Mary, Mary, and Mary.

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Mary was clearly the only Survivor castaway who voted for Joe.

David Kinne over in the jury stood up and scowled at the castaways as Mary walked out, making a statement that he was disappointed in them.


About The Author: Elizabeth Kwiatkowski

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