Senior night is always an emotional time for any team, and with 18 seniors being recognized on Friday, there were plenty of reasons for the Stetson Hatters to be distracted in their series opener against Jacksonville at Melching Field.
 
Redshirt freshman Nick Durgin made sure the 2021 Stetson seniors have good memories from the night, throwing a two-hit shutout with 10 strikeouts to lead the Hatters (23-15, 9-4) to a 5-0 victory over JU.
 
In addition to the performance by Durgin (6-2), the Hatters got stellar Senior Night performances from Andrew MacNeil (two runs), Hernen Sardinas (two-run double), Eric Foggo (21^st career home run) and the captain, Jorge Arenas (double and home run). Redshirt freshman Brandon Hylton also checked in with a pair of hits and drove in a run.
 
The only hits Durgin allowed in the game were a third inning grounder up the middle by Ruben Someillan that he almost got a glove on, and a ninth inning ground ball through the right side by Jesus Pacheco. Otherwise, Durgin allowed a walk, had a runner reach on an error and another reach on a strikeout/wild pitch.
 
That was it for the Dolphins (7-28, 0-13). The victory for Stetson was the fifth straight over JU.
 
The complete game was a first for Durgin, who had only once before reached the ninth inning. That came earlier this year when he took a no-hitter to the ninth at Alabama. He needed just 105 pitches against Jacksonville to post the shutout.
 
Jacksonville starting pitcher Tyler Santana didn't pitch poorly, but had no room for error. He surrendered all five Stetson runs on seven hits and two walks.
 
The Hatters and Dolphins will return to Melching Field on Saturday evening for the second game of their weekend series. That game is scheduled for a 6:30 p.m. start.
 
Game Facts

• Win – Nick Durgin (6-2)
• Loss – Tyler Santana (3-7)
• Time – 2:13 

Scoring Summary

• B1 – Andrew MacNeil led off the game with a single through the left side and worked his way around the bases, scoring on a two-out single by Brandon Hylton.
• B4 – Eric Foggo hit the first pitch he saw for a home run to right center for a 2-0 Stetson lead.
• B5 – Doubles from Jorge Arenas and Hernen Sardinas, with a walk to MacNeil in between, pushed the Stetson lead to 4-0.
• B7 – Arenas continued his hot-hitting on Senior Night with a solo home run to center, pushing the Stetson advantage to 5-0 

Hatters Notes

• Prior to Friday's game, Stetson Athletics honored 20 graduating student-athletes from the baseball program. Those honored were Jorge Arenas, Kyle Ball, Josh Bates, Nick Cardieri, Nick Chiseri, Nick DiPonzio, Eric Foggo, Chris Gonzalez, Nick Long, Giovany Lorenzo, Andrew MacNeil, Danny Martin, Jake Murphy, Jackson Olson, Joshua Plummer, Hernen Sardinas, Garner Spoljaric and Austin Wood along with 2020 seniors Robbie Peto and Jonathan Meola.
• Foggo's homer was the 21^st of his career and accounted his 100^th career RBI.
• With two runs scored, MacNeil has now scored 50 runs this season.
• Sardinas picked up his 16^th double of the year, and the 68^th of his career.
• The home run for Arenas was the 15^th of his career.
• The shutout for the Hatters was the fifth of the season, but the first since the second weekend of the season. 

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.