Box Score DeLand, Fla. ? Stetson took Florida Gulf Coast into extra innings but could not hold on and fell 7-5 Friday night to the top-ranked team in the A-Sun. Casey Frawley (New Haven, Ct.) had a big night scoring three of the five Hatter runs and knocking in a pair.
On the night Frawley was a double short of hitting for the cycle. He finished the game 4-for-5 with two singles, a triple and a home run. His 6th home run of the season in the 3rd inning easily cleared the wall in left field and brought the Hatters to within a run at 3-2.
Stetson tied the score at 3-3 in the bottom of the 6th. Frawley singled through the left side of the infield and moved to second on a single by Jeremy Cruz (Miami, Fla.). Justin Bass (DeLand, Fla.) followed with an RBI single to left field.
The Hatters took a 4-3 lead in the 7th inning. Sean Emory (Miami, Fla.) came up with an infield single, moved to second when Josh Clendenin (Atlanta, Ga.) reached on an error by the shortstop. Emory scored the go-ahead run on an RBI single by Frawley.
Unfortunately for Stetson fans, the home team once again had trouble closing out the game. The Hatters gave up two runs in the top of the 9th and allowed the Eagles to go up 5-4.
Hatter hopes were raised in the bottom half of the inning when Stetson came back to tie the game. Emory singled up the middle and ended up scoring on a pinch hit single by Brad Pippa (Danbury, Ct.).
After two scoreless extra innings, the Eagles ended the game with two runs in the top of the 12th.
David Burns (Seminole, Fla.) got his first starting nod of the season and pitched well giving up three runs and eight hits in 7 2/3 innings of work. He struck out five batters while walking two. Nick Pugliese (Deltona, Fla.), Saturday's scheduled starter, came on to close out the 8th inning, but could not hold the lead. He gave up two runs in the 9th and another two in the 12th and suffered the loss to lower his record to 3-4 on the season.
Stetson will return to Melching Field Saturday night to host Florida Gulf Coast in game two of the series. Game time is 7:00 p.m. They will play again at 1:00 p.m. on Sunday. Hatters fans can see all the action on Hatter Vision with play-by-play provided by the voice of Stetson baseball Bill Topping. They can also follow the games on GameWatcher by going to www.gohatters.com and clicking on “Live Stats”.
