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No. 9 - Quartet of Events Tie for Ninth in Year-End Countdown

Men's & Women's ASUN Tennis Success, Frank Griffin's 700th Win and Baseball Selected to Host NCAA Regional

NOTE: As voted by the staff and coaches of the Stetson Athletics Department, these stories tied for the No. 9 spot in our countdown from 2018.

On February ninth, the Hatters softball team opened its season with an 8-0 victory over Akron. The win was significant in that it marked the 700th victory in the career of head coach Frank Griffin at Stetson. On April 21 both the men's and women's tennis teams earned victories to advance to the ASUN Tournament championship and, on May 27 the NCAA announced that DeLand, Stetson and Melching Field had been selected as a host site for an NCAA Baseball Regional Tournament.

Head Coach Frank Griffin Wins No. 700

Stetson pounded out eight runs on 12 hits in a season-opening 8-0 win over Akron Friday afternoon at Patricia Wilson Field.  The win was the 700th victory for head coach Frank Griffin in his 22 seasons with the Hatters.  Stetson fell 2-1 to Kansas in the nightcap to finish 1-1 on opening day.

8735In the opener, freshman Jaime Tino tossed a one-hit shutout in her collegiate debut, holding Akron (0-2) to just one hit - a second-inning single by Sydney Jascoe.  She walked three and struck out six.

Stetson jumped on Zips starter Kooper Vertz with three runs in the bottom of the first inning.  Freshman Lizzie Shubert delivered a two-run single in her first career at-bat, and Blake Crews added an RBI single to give Stetson a 3-0 lead.

Freshman Devin Lewis lined a two-run the double in the bottom of the second to make it 5-0 Stetson, ending the day for Vertz.  

Maggie Fritts drove in two more runs with a bases-loaded single in the fourth, and Molly McLaughlin hit a walk-off single to center in the fifth, allowing Danielle Diaz to scamper home with the winning run.

All five Stetson freshmen started in the season opener.  Offensively, they combined to go 5-for-9 with three runs and four RBI.

Stetson was 8-for-14 against Akron with runners in scoring position.

Men's Tennis Downs FGCU to Advance to ASUN Finals

William Shkrob's three-set victory at No. 6 singles helped propel No. 2 seed Stetson to a thrilling 4-3 win over No. 3 seed FGCU in the ASUN Conference Men's Tennis Tournament semifinals, Saturday at the UNF Tennis Complex in Jacksonville.
 
12975The Hatters (18-3) now advance to Sunday's ASUN Championship match where they will face regular-season champion and No. 1 seed North Florida at 9 a.m. The match will be carried live on ESPN+.

"Both teams played a great college tennis today," Stetson head coach Christophe Noblet. "Everyone wanted it badly, and it came down to the last court. Hats off to Will for pushing himself, believing in his shots, keeping his composure, and giving us that final point. We are looking forward to an exciting match tomorrow, where UNF is clearly the favorite. But we will assuredly give it everything we've got, and let's see who comes out on top."
 
Shkrob's heroics helped Stetson reach the ASUN Championship final for the first time since 2011. The Hatters will be seeking their first ASUN title.
 
Stetson may have ultimately won the match but the Hatters had to rally after losing the doubles point. Down 1-0 as singles play began, Stetson traded victories with the Eagles (9-12).
 
Angus Bradshaw knotted the match for the Hatters with a 6-4, 6-4 win at No. 4, but FGCU got a straight set victory at No. 5 to take a 2-1 lead.
 
After FGCU won at No. 3 for a 3-1 lead, the top of Stetson's lineup came through as Malik Bhatnagar at No. 1 and Loic Blanco at No.2 each won second set tiebreakers to knot the match at 3-3.
 
That left it up to Shkrob. The sophomore won the first set, 6-3, but suffered a 2-6 loss in the second set. In the third, Shkrob and FGCU's Javier Fernandez traded points until Shkrob broke him at 5-5, and then won the match in the 12thgame when Fernandez returned a serve into the net.
 

Women's Tennis Edges FGCU to Advance to ASUN Finals

Stetson's Lucie Renault and Brooke Milner each won three-set matches to lead the No. 4 seed Hatters to a 4-3 win over No. 1 seed FGCU in the semifinals of the ASUN Conference Women's Tennis Championship, Saturday at UNF Tennis Complex in Jacksonville.
 
Brooke MilnerThe win puts Stetson (13-8) into Sunday's ASUN Championship match against No. 2 seed North Florida. The match will be streamed live on ESPN+ at 1 p.m.
 
One week after suffering a 7-0 loss at FGCU (10-8) to close out the regular-season, the Hatters wouldn't be denied. They opened play by winning the doubles as the No. 1 tandem of Danel Ashirova & Renault (6-1) and the No. 2 duo of Arijana Korac & Vicky Geurinckx (6-2) picked up wins for a 1-0 lead.
 
Singles play was a battle. After the Eagles tied the match with a straight set win at No. 1, Ashirova gave the Hatters a 2-1 advantage with an easy 6-2, 6-2 win at No. 3.
 
FGCU tied it up again with a win at No. 4, and the Eagles surged ahead for a 3-2 lead with a victory at No. 6.
 
Renault and Milner then rescued the Hatters. Both players won their opening sets, but suffered losses in the second sets to force a third. Renault was the first one to complete play, getting a 6-3 win at No. 2 to knot the match at 3-3. Milner followed moments later with her 6-3 win in the third set, propelling the Hatters into the championship.
 

Hatters Make History, Will Host Regional at Melching Field

In the late 1990s, when the City of DeLand and Stetson University first began talks of building a new baseball facility on the site of old Conrad Park, Stetson Director of Athletics Jeff Altier made a promise to city officials that if they agreed to the project, the Hatters would one day bring an NCAA Regional Tournament to DeLand.
 
More than two decades after that promise was made, and 20 years since Melching Field at Conrad Park opened as the home field for Hatters Baseball, that promise becomes reality next weekend.
 
On Sunday evening, Stetson University and the City of DeLand were selected by the NCAA as one of 16 host sites for Regional Tournaments to open the "Road to Omaha" in the 2018 NCAA Tournament.
 
Since the facility first opened in 1999, which corresponded with the expansion of the tournament from eight to 16 regional sites, 68 cities have been awarded Regional Tournaments. DeLand becomes the 69th community to join that exclusive club.
 
The other Regional Tournament sites for 2018 include Gainesville and Tallahassee, Palo Alto, Calif., Fayetteville, Ark., Oxford, Miss., Corvallis, Ore., Clemson and Conway, SC, Athens, Ga., Chapel Hill, Greenville and Raleigh, NC, Minneapolis, MN, Lubbock and Austin, Texas.
 
In the now 20 seasons with 16 host sites, Tallahassee leads the way with a total of 18 regionals. The only years Florida State didn't host were 2006 and 2010.
 
Baton Rouge stands second with 15 NCAA Regionals, tied with Houston (11 for Rice and four for UH) with Coral Gables (12), Fullerton, Calif. (12), Columbia, SC, and Gainesville tied with 11 and Tempe, Ariz., with 10.
 
It is the first time an NCAA Regional will be played in the state of Florida other than in Tallahassee, Gainesville or Coral Gables.
 
About Stetson University Athletics: Stetson University's Athletics Program has a vision of developing a culture of champions athletically, academically and within the community. This vision is accomplished through a mission of recruiting and developing student-athletes, coaches and staff, creating a culture of champions, within and outside of competition. The department operates with five core values: Championship Culture, Integrity, Excellence, Pride/Tradition and Leadership. To learn more about the Vision, Mission and Core Values for Stetson Athletics, visit GoHatters.com and click on Mission Statement under the Inside Athletics tab.
 
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Players Mentioned

Blake Crews

#22 Blake Crews

C/UT
5' 10"
Sophomore
Maggie Fritts

#12 Maggie Fritts

OF
5' 7"
Senior
Molly McLaughlin

#8 Molly McLaughlin

INF
5' 4"
Sophomore
Danielle Diaz

#19 Danielle Diaz

IF/OF
5' 1"
Freshman
Devin Lewis

#16 Devin Lewis

UTIL
5' 4"
Freshman
Jaime Tino

#4 Jaime Tino

P
5' 9"
Freshman
Arijana Korac

Arijana Korac

5' 4"
Senior
Lucie Renault

Lucie Renault

5' 9"
Sophomore
Loic Blanco

Loic Blanco

6' 3"
Senior
Angus Bradshaw

Angus Bradshaw

6' 0"
Sophomore

Players Mentioned

Blake Crews

#22 Blake Crews

5' 10"
Sophomore
C/UT
Maggie Fritts

#12 Maggie Fritts

5' 7"
Senior
OF
Molly McLaughlin

#8 Molly McLaughlin

5' 4"
Sophomore
INF
Danielle Diaz

#19 Danielle Diaz

5' 1"
Freshman
IF/OF
Devin Lewis

#16 Devin Lewis

5' 4"
Freshman
UTIL
Jaime Tino

#4 Jaime Tino

5' 9"
Freshman
P
Arijana Korac

Arijana Korac

5' 4"
Senior
Lucie Renault

Lucie Renault

5' 9"
Sophomore
Loic Blanco

Loic Blanco

6' 3"
Senior
Angus Bradshaw

Angus Bradshaw

6' 0"
Sophomore