DELAND, Fla. --The Stetson Hatters rallied to score five in the ninth inning and walked it off with sophomore Landon Moran at the plate to pick up the 9-8 victory over the Lipscomb Bisons on Friday night at Melching Field. It was their third walk-off of the season as it broke a three game skid and brought the Hatters up to .500 in conference play.
Sophomore TJ Melani got the win, his second of the season, coming out of the bullpen for Stetson in the ninth. The right-hander went 0.2 innings, giving up one hit after alleviating senior Nick Durgin, who also pitched well, going 3.1 innings, surrendering one run on three hits, walking one and striking out two.
Offensively, the Hatters were paced by Moran, who went 3-for-4 on the day with a double and three RBIs. Junior Daniel Labrador provided a solid day at the plate as well, going 2-for-2 with two RBIs. Freshman Kyle Jones also helped out for Stetson, putting together two hits in four trips to the plate while adding a double and a walk.
"We needed that. We needed a ballgame where we fought back because we haven't been playing well the last three games. We were kinda flat, made three errors and didn't really pitch great for the first couple of innings there and we just need to show that fight," said Head Coach Steve Trimper. "The win is great but I'm thinking long term for the team. You play bad every now and then, that happens, but teams that can flip that switch, especially in the middle of a game, that's a good trait for us to have so I'm proud of the guys for being able to do that."
The Hatters were trailing 5-0 in the fourth inning when they first put runs on the board, thanks to Moran's RBI double with two outs to plate Jayden Hylton.
The Bisons expanded their lead to 7-1 before the Hatters offense got back to work, cutting into that lead in the eighth. which brought the score to 7-4 in favor of the Bisons. Nelphie Lopez began the effort with a pinch-hit leadoff single before Gio Cueto drew a walk. Labrador delivered the first knock, an RBI single to left field to score Lopez, while a wild pitch plated another. Moran capped off the inning with an RBI single to left to bring in Brandon Hylton.
Lipscomb extended their lead to 8-4 before Stetson rallied to score five times in the bottom half of the ninth to claim victory, walking it off when junior Gio Cueto came across to score.
Yohann Dessureault and Isaiah Barkett led off the bottom of the ninth with a pair of singles before Kyles Jones loaded the bases with a four pitch walk. Lopez roped a single to left field prior to Cueto drawing a bases loaded walk. After Labrador laced an RBI single to left to bring it within one, Hylton was hit by a pitch on the first pitch to him, loading the bases once more with just one out. Moran then provided the game-winning sacrifice fly to center field to complete the comeback.
The Hatters out-hit the Bisons at a 14-12 clip and went 4-for-12 (.333) with runners in scoring position. Stetson pitchers limited Lipscomb to 3-for-16 (.188) with runners in scoring position. while facing 49 Lipscomb batters in the game, yielding nine ground balls and 10 fly balls while striking out seven.
Stetson, now 14-9, continue their series against Lipscomb tomorrow night at 6:30 PM at Melching Field at Conrad Park.
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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