Time after time, inning after inning, on Friday afternoon at Melching Field the Stetson Hatters had chances to put runs on the board in their winner's bracket final against arch-rival Jacksonville in the 2019 ASUN Tournament.
 
The Hatters were turned away time and time again, going hitless in 22 at bats with runners on base before sophomore Eric Foggo delivered an RBI single in the 16^th inning to put Stetson on top 2-1. That opened the flood gates as the Hatters added four more runs in the inning, taking a 6-1 victory.
 
The game tied for the longest in ASUN Tournament history, matching Stetson's 8-7 victory over Jacksonville in the 2015 tournament in Ft. Myers.
 
For Stetson (27-30) the win was a season-best fourth straight. The Hatters also improved to 4-1 on the year in extra-inning games, including 2-0 in the ASUN Tournament.
 
Jacksonville (32-26) falls into the loser's bracket where the Dolphins will face the winner of Friday's second game between North Florida and Liberty. That game is now scheduled for 11 a.m. on Saturday, with the winner advancing to play Stetson for the conference title and automatic berth into the NCAA Tournament.
 
While Stetson's offensive heroics in the 16^th inning decided the game, it was the pitching performance turned in by sophomore starter Chris Gonzalez and freshman reliever Danny Garcia (5-1) that was the story of the game.
 
Gonzalez, who had allowed 19 runs on 38 hits over his last four starts, covering 18.2 innings, was at his very best when the Hatters needed him most. The left-hander allowed just one run on two hits over an ASUN Tournament record 11 innings of work on Friday.
 
Jacksonville took the lead in the second inning when Duncan Hunter hit a solo home run to left. Gonzalez did not allow another hit until there were two out in the 10^th inning. Following a walk to open the third, Gonzalez retired 23 straight JU batters before that Hunter single in the 10^th.
 
He finished his outing, which fell one inning shy of the Stetson individual record, allowing just the one run on two hits with one walk, two hit batters and seven strikeouts.
 
Stetson scored against JU starter Austin Temple in the third after the Dolphins' right-hander walked Nick Cardieri and Andrew MacNeil to open the inning. Kyle Ball delivered a sacrifice bunt, the first of four in the game for the Hatters, before Foggo lifted a fly ball to left to score Cardieri and tie the game.
 
Temple was almost equal to Gonzalez in the game, working 10 innings while allowing just the one run on five hits. He walked five and struck out five.
 
The Hatters turned their fortunes over to Garcia for the 12^th inning and the right-hander went the rest of the way, allowing three hits. He was able to escape major trouble in the 14^th inning when the Dolphins got consecutive hits, one on a bunt, to open the inning. JU was unable to get a bunt down to move the runners up, and Garcia made them pay by getting an infield pop-up and a double-play grounder.
 
Jacksonville reliever Jagger McCoy (1-3) matched Garcia until the 16^th, and deciding, frame.
 
Koos led off the inning by drawing a walk and then stole second to get into scoring position for Foggo. After falling behind 0-2 in the count, Foggo was able to drive a ground ball through the right side of the infield, allowing Koos to race home with the run that gave Stetson the lead.
 
Jacksonville brought in Nick Love to pitch to Baylen Sparks with one out. Foggo stole second and then Sparks reached on a fielding error. A wild pitch moved both runners into scoring position before Austin Bogart was walked intentionally to load the bases.
 
All three runners moved up, with Foggo scoring, on a passed ball before Austin Dilbert drew a walk. With the infield in, Benito Varela delivered a two-run single to left for a 5-1 lead. Andrew MacNeil followed with an RBI double for the final run.
 
Garcia closed out the longest outing of his career, five innings, with three ground balls in the bottom of the frame to close out the Stetson win.
 
MacNeil led Stetson with three hits while Foggo and Arenas had two each.
 
The Hatters will now sit back and rest while UNF, Liberty and Jacksonville battle for the spot opposite Stetson in the championship round. The title game will be played on Saturday after the conclusion of the loser's bracket final. An if necessary game would be played on Sunday.
 
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.