The Stetson Hatters got off to a fast start on a rainy afternoon at Spec Martin Memorial Stadium, but it was visiting Princeton who controlled the clock for most of the game and left DeLand with a 39-14 victory over the host Hatters.

The Stetson defense gave the Hatters the first scoring chance of the day when junior linebacker Alex Alteus forced a fumble that was recovered by sophomore David Stubbs midway through the first quarter.
 
Sophomore quarterback Brady Meitz made that turnover, the only one for the visiting Tigers, count by connecting with sophomore receiver Michael Carley for a 60-yard touchdown pass. Meitz completed 23-of-35 pass attempts for 253 yards in the game, but he was also sacked five times, losing fumbles on two, and threw an interception.
 
"Our guys were really ready to go," Stetson coach Brian Young said. "I thought we had a great week of practice and our execution early on was there. We talk all the time about Hatters not beating Hatters and we fell into that rut again of self-destructing with penalties."
 
Three of those penalties came on kickoffs, wiping out returns by Jalen Mason of 40, 39 and 52 yards.
 
"Those kinds of penalties are major game-changers," Young said. "You can't beat teams like Princeton, or anyone else, doing that."

Tigers quarterback Blake Stenstrom also struggled to hang on to the slippery ball at times, fumbling the snap four times. Princeton (1-0) was able to recover each. Stenstrom, making his first start, managed to avoid the sacks and turnovers to connect on 23-of-33 pass attempts for 256 yards and a pair of scores.

After Stetson (2-1) took the lead, Princeton came right back with a 70-yard scoring drive that ended on the final play of the opening quarter on a one-yard TD plunge by freshman Ryan Butler.

Undeterred, the Hatters opened the second quarter with a five-play touchdown drive that was again capped by a big play as Meitz hooked up with sophomore Nazeviah Burris for a 49-yard scoring strike. 

The combination of the wet weather and a tough Princeton defense made things difficult for the Stetson offense the rest of the day, and the Tigers' offense ground away at the Hatters, controlling the ball for almost 40 minutes of game time.
 
"We have to look at what was happening with our zone coverages because we couldn't get them off the field," Young said. "We gave up a third and 18. We just didn't rally around and get them on the ground and that is not the standard we have set here. We are going to get that addressed."
 
The Hatters were held to negative rushing yards for just the fourth time in the modern era, thanks mostly to the 38 yards in losses Meitz took on the five sacks. Junior Jalen Leary totaled 22 yards on just 11 carries to lead the Stetson ground attack.
 
"They made us one-dimensional on offense and we have to get better up front," Young said.
 
The Princeton offense put together scoring drives of eight plays and seven plays, both ending with touchdown passes from Stenstrom to senior Andrei Iosivas, to turn a 14-7 Stetson lead into a 20-14 Tigers advantage. The scoring plays were from five and 10 yards. Princeton missed the point-after on the second one.
 
A penalty on the ensuing kickoff against the Hatters, one of eight penalties for 80 yards in the game against Stetson, pinned the Hatters at their own 10. A sack cost Stetson seven more yards before a fumbled snap left the Hatters with a third and long at their own 1. Leary was then corralled by Daiveon Carrington and James Stagg in the end zone for a safety, giving the Tigers a 22-14 lead at halftime.
 
Princeton put the game away with a pair of scoring drives in the third quarter. Sophomore John Volker capped a 10-play drive to start the third quarter with a one-yard dive into the end zone, and sophomore Jeffrey Sexton made up for his missed PAT earlier with a 46-yard field goal to push the Tigers' lead to 32-14
 
Stetson ran just eight offensive plays in the quarter.
 
The final points of the day came early in the final period after Meitz was stripped on a sack by junior Liam Johnson at the Hatters' 25. Butler paid off the turnover on the first play, running through the right side of the line for a 25-yard touchdown.
 
Burris pulled in eight catches for 89 yards and the one score to lead the Stetson receivers.
 
Senior linebacker Ethan Hull led all defenders with 14 tackles, while junior Davion Maxwell had 12. Alteus added 10 tackles, with 2.5 for loss including the only Stetson sack, and he forced fumble.
 
Senior linebacker Joseph Bonczek led the Princeton defense with six tackles. Five different Tigers defenders were credited with sacks in the game.
 
The Hatters will turn their attention forward immediately, to the start of Pioneer Football League play next week. Stetson will finish its season-opening four-game home stand by hosting Morehead State at 1 p.m. The Eagles took a 36-35 victory over Stetson by scoring with 20 seconds left in the matchup between the teams last year in Kentucky.
 
"There is a lot for us to learn and grow from in this game," Young said. "I have no doubt that we will be ready to play next week. We are not down because we know we could have played a lot better today."
 
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.

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