All it took was one swing by redshirt sophomore Christian Pregent to put smiles on the faces of the more than 700 fans gathered at Melching Field on Sunday for the Hatters' double-header against North Florida.
 
After falling to the Ospreys 6-2 in the opening game of the day, the Hatters were in a scoreless tie in game two, having been no-hit by UNF junior left-hander Tony Roca through four innings of a scheduled seven-inning game.
 
Freshman Andrew Estrella ended the no-hit bid for Roca (0-4) with a solid single to left-center to open the fifth. After Anthony DeFabbia put down a perfect sacrifice bunt to move Estrella into scoring position, Pregent came to the plate with a chance to get the Hatters on the board.
 
Hitless in his previous 10 at bats going back to March 14, Pregent crushed a 1-0 fastball from Roca down the line, just inside the fair pole, for a two-run homer. That was all sophomore right-hander Cole Stallings (5-1) needed, as he threw a complete-game shutout in Stetson's 3-0 victory.
 
The Hatters are now 16-11 overall on the season, 4-5 on ASUN play. UNF goes to 10-19 overall, 2-7 in league play with the double-header split.
 
Stallings needed just 77 pitches to throw his first complete game. He allowed just four hits, did not walk anyone, and struck out three.

The Hatters added an insurance run in the sixth when Connor Kehl delivered a perfect squeeze bunt to score Jakob Bullard with the only other run of the game.
 
UNF junior left-hander Peter Holden earned his first win of the year in the opening game, holding the Hatters to just one run through eight innings of work before allowing a solo homer to Brandon Hylton leading off the bottom of the ninth. Holden walked one and struck out eight while allowing just four hits to lead the Ospreys to the win.
 
The Ospreys scored an unearned run off Stetson starter Jonathan Gonzalez (3-4) in the first inning as a result of the first of four Hatters' errors in the game. Gonzalez, however, seemed to have things in control going to the fifth when he ran into trouble.
 
UNF catcher Caleb Stafford opened the inning with a one-hop shot back at the mound. Gonzalez knocked the ball down, but it rolled too far away for a play to earn an infield hit. That opened the doors for UNF. A sacrifice bunt with a throwing error put two runners on before a hit batter loaded the bases.
 
Abraham Sequera unloaded them with a double to the wall in center, scoring all three runs. He advanced to third on another throwing error and then scored on a Cade Westbrook hit to put UNF up 5-0. The Ospreys made it 6-0 in the sixth when Stafford doubled home another run off freshman reliever Cooper Smith.
 
Stetson got a run back in the bottom of the sixth inning when Cameron Hill led off with a double, stole third and then scored on an infield hit by Bullard. After Hylton's solo homer in the ninth, Stetson put a pair of runners on against UNF reliever Stephen Halstead, but he was able to get out of trouble with a pair of strikeouts and a ground ball to end the game.
 
Graduate transfer Rasesh Pandya made easy work of the Ospreys over the final 3.1 innings of the opener, retiring all 10 batters he faced with the help of a double play.
 
The Hatters managed just eight hits in the two games against the pair of tough UNF left-handers, including just three in the game two victory. Hill ran his streak of games having reached base to 22, but saw his hit streak come to an end at 13 as a result of the seven-inning game that allowed him just three plate appearances.
 
Hylton was the only Stetson player to hit safely in both games. UNF finished the day with just 11 hits, with three by Aiden Sweatt and two each by Sequera, Westbrook and Stafford.
 
The Hatters will go back on the road for a mid-week game at Florida State on Wednesday before returning to Melching Field for another big ASUN series next weekend against Kennesaw State. The Owls dropped two of three games at FGCU this weekend and now stand tied with the Eagles for the East Division lead with a 7-2 record in league play.
 
About Stetson University Athletics: Stetson University's Athletics Program is driven by a shared purpose. It is what inspires, motivates and binds us together. More than a task, a reason for being. THE HATTER PURPOSE is to create and provide an experience of a lifetime through teamwork and relationships to achieve excellence. This purpose is achieved through five Core Values: Communication, Integrity, Excellence, Value People and Commitment. To learn more about the HATS program and our Core Values, visit GoHatters.com/HATS. Get in on the conversation on social media by following Stetson Athletics on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. For video content, visit our YouTube channels: Stetson Hatters, Stetson Athletics and, for live events, Hatter Vision.