If the 2022 Stetson Hatters are going to have a chance to win an ASUN Championship, the road to that title begins this weekend at Kennesaw State.
 
Before Stetson (22-26, 7-17) can even think about adding to the trophy shelf, the Hatters have to earn one of the eight spots in the ASUN Tournament. With just seven games left in the regular season, every inning, every pitch, matters.
 
The only way for Stetson to get into that tournament is for the Hatters to finish with an NCAA RPI that is higher than five of the other six teams that won't receive an automatic spot for finishing in the top three in either of the ASUN's divisions. The Hatters currently occupy the last spot, based on RPI, but with two weeks left in the season, there is still plenty of time to move up, or down, and every game counts.
 
Kennesaw State (28-21, 15-9) currently sits second in the ASUN East Division, one game behind Liberty. The Flames and Owls will square off to close the season, but neither has the luxury to look ahead. Liberty plays this weekend at FGCU, which is just two games behind, in third place, in the division.
 
The Hatters will need to forget what happened earlier this year when the Owls visited Melching Field. Stetson's bats were ice-cold during that series, managing just four runs on 13 hits. KSU was one of the hottest teams in the country at that time, but the Owls are just 7-12 overall since that weekend, including series losses to Liberty, UNF and FGCU.
 
To flip the script against the Owls, the Hatters will have to hit the ball better to keep pace with the potent KSU offense. The Owls are hitting .292 as a team and are averaging 6.5 runs per game with the trio of Josh Hatcher (.384), Donovan Cash (.364) and Zac Corbin (.325) leading the way. KSU had 34 hits and scored 21 runs against Stetson the first time around, thanks in large part to the five home runs they hit at Melching Field.
 
Hatcher and Corbin both homered in the series, but it was Cash Young who did the biggest damage by hitting home runs off three different Stetson pitchers.
 
For Stetson to have success, the Hatters' starting pitchers will have to keep the KSU offense in check. Friday's starter, sophomore right-hander Nick Durgin (1-4, 4.04), did a good job against the Owls the first time around, holding KSU to just one earned run, two total, on seven hits over seven innings in a game Stetson lost 3-2.
 
Saturday's starter, graduate left-hander Chris Gonzalez (1-4, 4.98) made one relief appearance against the Owls in the first series, allowing three runs on five hits over two innings. Sophomore right-hander Austin Amaral (3-2, 3.43), expected to start the series finale, also pitched in relief in the first series, throwing two shutout innings while allowing three hits.
 
KSU will have senior Jack Myers (4-3, 3.41) on the mound in the opener. The big (6-7) right-hander went seven innings in his first match-up, allowing just one run on five hits. Senior left-hander John Bezdicek (3-1, 3.48) will be on the mound for the Owls on Saturday. He allowed two runs on three hits, but worked just five innings in his first outing against Stetson, going head-to-head against Durgin.
 
KSU has not announced a starter for Sunday, but the first time the teams met it was sophomore left-hander Brayden Eidson (3-2, 6.87) who filled that spot, allowing one run on four hits over five innings. He has struggled since that outing, allowing 19 earned runs over his last 12 innings of work.
 
Offensively, the Hatters had 11 hits in their game on Tuesday against South Florida but left 14 runners on base. Stetson has been going down on strikes at a record-setting pace this year. The Hatters have been struck out 10 or more times in a game 21 times and, with 475 strikeouts on the year, they are just 18 away from the single-season program record, which was set in 2019 (493).
 
Defensively, redshirt sophomore catcher Christian Pregent is having a historic season. Pregent had handled 307 chances behind the plate this season with no errors and one passed ball. That is the most defensive chances in a season for any Stetson player without being charged with an error.
 
Opposing catchers have 22 passed balls and 10 errors against Stetson this year. ASUN catchers have been called for a total of 126 passed balls this year, an average of 11.3 per team. On top of his defense and pitch-calling, Pregent has also thrown out 15-of-40 runners trying to steal, 37.5 percent.
 
The games at Kennesaw State this weekend will be broadcast on the Owls' YouTube channel with Nolan Alexander and Trey Fowler on the call of the action. Friday's first pitch is set for 5 p.m. with Saturday's game scheduled for a 2 p.m. start and Sunday's series finale scheduled for 1 p.m.
 
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.