Fresh off a sweep of last weekend's ASUN series at Jacksonville, as well as a sweep of the ASUN Player and Pitcher of the Week awards, the Stetson baseball team is ready to take its second shot at nationally-ranked Florida.
 
The Hatters and Gators will meet at Florida Ballpark tonight at 6 p.m. The game will be broadcast on the SEC Network Plus through the ESPN+ app with Mick Hubert and Nick Belmonte on the call of the game.
 
Stetson (19-9) is looking for its first win over Florida (18-9) since March 20, 2007. Hatters coach Steve Trimper is 0-5 in games against Florida – 0-3 as the head coach at Maine and 0-2 at Stetson.
 
Besides going for their 20^th overall win of the year, the Hatters will be looking to keep the momentum going off a sweep of Jacksonville last weekend. Stetson is tied with Liberty atop the overall ASUN standings with a 5-1 record in league play. The Hatters have a one-game lead over FGCU in the South Division.
 
In addition to keeping the team momentum going, there are some individual marks at stake. Hatters' captain Jorge Arenas enters play tonight one hit shy of the 200^th hit in his career. When he gets that hit, he will join with teammate Hernen Sardinas, who crossed the 200-hit threshold earlier this year.
 
In addition, another of the Hatters' captains, outfielder Andrew MacNeil, enters play this week leading Division I in runs scored. So far this year MacNeil has scored 37 runs, a career-high, in the first 28 games. He is on pace to have a shot at the school single-season record – 87 by Frank Corr in 2000.
 
In the first game between the teams this year, Banks Griffith reached base five times for the Hatters on two hits and three walks. Florida catcher Nathan Hickey had four hits and drove in three runs in the game for the Gators while left-fielder Jacob Young had three hits and drove in three runs. They are the top two hitters for Florida this year.
 
Freshman left-hander Jonathan Gonzalez (2-0, 3.38) will make his first career start tonight for Stetson. In his last four relief appearances Gonzalez has worked a combined 9.2 innings, allowing one run on six hits with no walks and five strikeouts.
 
Gonzalez had his best outing of the year with 5.0 innings of relief against FGCU, when he allowed one run on two hits with two strikeouts. His last outing was on Friday at Jacksonville when he pitched two shutout innings, allowing a pair of hits with three strikeouts.
 
Florida will counter with redshirt junior right-hander Garrett Milchin (1-1, 7.59). Milchin, who has battled back after missing three seasons due to injury, has appeared in four games this year, all as a starter. He was roughed up in his last start, against Florida State on March 16, allowing seven runs on eight hits in 1.2 innings.
 
Milchin threw 1/3 of an inning against Stetson in 2017, allowing a run on a hit with one walk and one strikeout in game Florida won 9-8 in 11 innings in DeLand. Milchin has never pitched more than 4.1 innings in any of the 21 games he has pitched in as a Gator.
 
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.