Going into Saturday's regular season home-finale at Melching Field against Jacksonville, the Hatters had several objectives in mind.
 
The plan was to give some young and less-experienced pitchers a chance to show they are ready to help in the post-season, give the regular lineup some live at bats and continue to build on the momentum from the previous two wins.
 
There was also the matter of making sure seniors Jorge Arenas and Andrew MacNeil, players who have been in the Stetson program since arriving in the fall of 2016, got to go out with a victory in the final game they will ever play at the place that has been their baseball home for the last five years.
 
A nine-run first inning against a JU squad that was coming off a 12-2 win over North Florida on Friday night virtually assure all of those objectives would be completed.
 
The Hatters followed that quick start with three more runs in both the second and third innings and then coasted to a 15-3 victory over the Dolphins.
 
Stetson improved to 26-20 with the win while JU fell to 11-31. The game did not count in the ASUN standings.
 
Stetson coach Steve Trimper made sure that both Arenas and MacNeil received one final ovation from the Hatters fans when he called time out with one out in the top of the eighth inning and waved both players off the field to a standing ovation. Trimper did the same in the ninth inning for graduate transfer Hernen Sardinas.
 
As for the other objectives for the evening, MacNeil, catcher Danny Martin, Sardinas, Eric Foggo and Arenas all had two hits in the game and every Stetson starter reached base and scored in the first inning.
 
The Hatters used six pitchers in the game, with Joshua Plummer going the first two innings, followed by three innings from Gavin Sullivan and then one inning each from Austin Wood, Anthony DeFabbia, Cole Stallings and Jonathan Velazquez.
 
That group allowed JU just six hits and three runs despite walking seven batters and striking out just five.
 
The Hatters will close the regular season tomorrow, travelling to Harmon Stadium to face the same North Florida team they will square off against next weekend with a berth in the ASUN Tournament on the line. Tomorrow's game, which also does not count in the ASUN standings, is scheduled for a 3 p.m. start. The game is scheduled to be broadcast on ESPN+ with Richard Miller and Hunter Bowling calling the action.
 
Game Facts

• Win – Gavin Sullivan (2-2)
• Loss – Mason Adams (1-3)
• Time – 3:13

Scoring Summary

• B1 – All nine Hatters scored in the inning. The Hatters had four hits in the frame while also drawing three walks and having two batters hit by pitches. Sardinas singled in a run and Foggo singled in two. MacNeil doubled home two in his second at bat and both he and Nick DiPonzio scored on wild pitches.
• B2 – A walk and hits by Brandon Hylton and Foggo loaded the bases with one out. Sardinas scored on a wild pitch and then Arenas drove in the other two with a hit.
• T3 – After working around walks in the first two innings, Plummer walked the first three JU batters in the third before giving way to Sullivan. A sacrifice fly plated one run and another scored on a ground out.
• B3 – Danny Martin opened the inning with a double to right center and Kyle Ball followed with a hit through the left side to put runners on the corners. Sardinas allowed both runners to trot home when he blasted his ninth home run of the year to right, just out of the reach of Elias Flowers.
• T8 – Cole Stalling hit the first batter he faced with a pitch before Cory Heffron and Jackson Grabsky delivered hits to plate a run. Stallings got out of the inning with a 6-4-3 double play.

Hatters Notes

• The nine-run inning for Stetson was the most runs the Hatters have scored in any inning since June 3, 2018. That night the Hatters had a 10-run third inning in the DeLand Regional Championship game against Oklahoma State.
• After reaching base in his first three plate appearances against JU, Foggo had reached base in seven consecutive plate appearances going back to Tuesday's game against Florida. His streak ended when he grounded out in the fifth inning.
• Arenas now has 2018 hits and 130 RBI in his Stetson career after Saturday's game.
• MacNeil picked up his 31^st career double and now has 92 RBI in his career. He also scored his 58^th run of the season.
• The RBI single in the first inning for Sardinas gave him 150 career RBI. He added three more RBI when he hit his 30^th career home run, his team-leading ninth of the year.
• The win was number 515 for the Hatters at Melching Field, which just finished its 22^nd season as the home of Stetson Baseball.
• Stetson now owns a 96-88-2 all-time series lead over Jacksonville on the diamond.

 
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.