Stetson baseball fans will have one final opportunity to see the Hatters play at Melching Field during the 2021 season on Saturday night when Stetson hosts Jacksonville in a non-conference game.
 
First pitch for the game is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. The game will be broadcast on ESPN+ with Evan Weston and Messod Bendayan on the call of the action.
 
Stetson was originally scheduled to play in an ASUN cross-over event at Kennesaw State against the Owls and Liberty this weekend. That event was canceled by the league when KSU and the Flames had a series against each other canceled earlier this year. They will play against each other this weekend in league play, but the results from those games will have no bearing on the seedings for the ASUN Divisional Play-In round next weekend.
 
In addition to hosting Jacksonville on Saturday, the Hatters will travel to Jacksonville for a Sunday afternoon tilt against North Florida. That game is scheduled for a 3 p.m. start and will also be broadcast on ESPN+ with Richard Miller and former Ospreys pitcher Hunter Bowling calling the action.
 
While it also won't count in the league standings, the Sunday game between the Hatters and Ospreys will be a preview of the Divisional series between the teams next weekend. That series, a best-of-three format, will begin on Friday night at 6 p.m. with the second game scheduled for Saturday at 2 p.m. The final game, if necessary, is slated to be played on Sunday at 1 p.m.
 
The other ASUN Divisional series matchups will have FGCU hosting Jacksonville while Liberty will host Bellarmine and Kennesaw State will host Lipscomb. The four series winners will advance to play in the ASUN Tournament. May 27-29 at North Florida's Harmon Stadium.
 
But, before getting into ASUN post-season play, the Hatters (25-20) hope to continue to build some momentum from last Sunday's win against UNF and Tuesday night's victory over Florida. Jacksonville (10-30), who hosts UNF tonight, has not played since dropping an extra-innings game to FGCU last Sunday.
 
The Hatters are led by two of the top hitters in the ASUN, graduates Hernen Sardinas and Andrew MacNeil. Both are having the best seasons in their collegiate careers and both will be in the mix for ASUN Player of the Year honors.
 
Sardinas comes into the weekend hitting a team-leading .355 on the year, third best in the ASUN. He is second in the league in slugging and doubles, is fourth in home runs and leads the league in RBI and total bases. Sardinas' next RBI will be the 150^th of his career.
 
MacNeil comes in riding a career-best 11-game hit streak and is second in the nation in runs scored with 57. Overall, he is hitting .308 on the year but, during his current streak, he is hitting .396 (19-48) with six doubles, two triples and three homers. He has a .453 on-base percentage and is slugging .792 during the current streak.
 
MacNeil is 24th in the nation in times hit by pitch (14) this year and, the next time he gets hit he will tie Patrick Mazeika for the Stetson career record with 48. MacNeil ranks 5th in the ASUN in on-base percentage this year is first in triples, third in doubles, seventh in home runs, walks and hits.
 
The Hatters come into the game against Jacksonville having won four of the six games this season, but the teams split their two series, with each winning on the others' home field. Stetson leads the all-time series against JU 95-88-2. The Hatters are 50-38-2 all-time at home against the Dolphins.
 
It is no surprise that MacNeil is the Hatters' top hitter against JU this year, batting .455 with two doubles and two triples. He has scored nine of Stetson's 33 runs in the six games. Eric Foggo has also swung a big bat, hitting .429 with a pair of home runs and eight runs batted in. He had two hits, including his 22^nd career home run, on Tuesday against Florida.
 
Stetson is expected to send right-hander Joshua Plummer (0-0, 12.00) to the mound for his first start as a Hatter. He has appeared in just three games this year, allowing four runs on two hits in three innings. The problem has been his command. He has walked seven and thrown three wild pitches.
 
Ruben Someillan has led JU offensively in the series against Stetson. The senior has hit .400 but with just one extra-base hit (a double) and two RBI. The Dolphins have just four extra-base hits in six games against Stetson.
 
The Hatters will see a familiar right-hander on the mound – either Mason Adams (1-2, 5.60) or Mike Cassala (2-4, 7.29). Adams has started against Stetson twice, allowing seven runs on 11 hits over 9.2 innings. Cassala was the winning pitcher in a 5-2 JU victory on May 2, allowing one run on three hits over 6.2 innings. He did walk five and hit a pair of batters in that outing.
 
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.