Stetson junior right-hander Jack Perkins showed on Saturday night why he should never be overlooked, turning in a dominant performance for the Hatters on Saturday night in a 5-0 victory over Manhattan.
 
The Hatters (2-0) will go for the season-opening weekend sweep of the Jaspers (0-2) on Sunday. First pitch is scheduled for 1 p.m. at Melching Field.
 
Perkins was as good on Saturday as he was at any time during his stellar sophomore campaign. He took a no-hitter into the sixth inning and surrendered just one hit, a solid single to center by Manhattan leadoff hitter Brendan Bisset, in his 7.1 innings of work. He struck-out 10 and walked just three, including the last two he faced before turning the game over to the bullpen.
 
Sophomore Ryan Stark retired the only two batters he faced to end the Manhattan eighth and then freshman Austin Wood put the Jaspers down in order in the ninth, with a pair of strikeouts, to close out the win.
 
Stetson didn't do much offensively in the game against Manhattan starter Nick Massa, except for one inning. The Hatters were ignited by senior catcher Austin Hale's leadoff home run in the third inning and followed with four more hits in a row.
 
Jacob Koos doubled in Jonathan Meola and Andrew MacNeil followed with a two-run double, scoring Koos and Bruce Martin. Austin Bogart closed the inning with a sacrifice fly to score MacNeil.
 
After that frame, the Hatters got just one more hit the rest of the night, a leadoff single by Hale in the seventh.
 
Massa worked seven innings for the Jaspers, allowing the five runs on six hits. He walked one and struck out two.
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.