DELAND, Fla. - The bats remain scorching hot for Stetson as the Hatters tallied a season-high 19 runs on 16 hits to run rule the South Florida Bulls at Melching Field on Tuesday night. Brandon Hylton and Yohann Dessureault each racked up four RBIs to help power the Hatters past an early 7-0 deficit. The high scoring performance came off the heels of back-to-back series sweeps as Stetson now rides a seven game win streak. The red hot Hats have now plated 57 runs over the past four games.

Senior Nick Durgin (2-2) got the win in relief for Stetson, who is now 20-9 on the season. The right-hander threw one shutout inning without giving up a hit, one walk and striking out one. Senior Cole Stallings also pitched well, entering the game with bases loaded and no outs before he escaped the jam unharmed while striking out two.

Hylton went 3-for-5 with a double and a home run in addition to his four RBIs for the Hatters. Sophomore Lorenzo Meola put together a standout day at the plate as well, going 2-for-6 with a home run and two RBI. Dessureault put together two hits in four trips to the plate while adding a walk and four RBI.

"It's kind of become our theme, there's just no quit in this team. Down 7-0 and you come back and run rule a team, that's hard to do but we just said to ourselves, it's so early, we just need to chip away. This team is capable of scoring 7, 8, or 9 runs and we had six innings to play at the time so we've done it before," said Head Coach Steve Trimper. "Our bullpen came in and held it to two runs down the stretch which was very good with Van Dyke, Durgin, McAtee and Stallings, bases loaded no outs in the seventh and he goes out and shuts the door like that. All around, a good competitive win." 

Trailing 7-0, the Hatters first put runs on the board in the third inning. Stetson scored twice, with one run coming across on freshman Logan Hughes' single.

The Hatters kept the Bulls off the board before taking the lead in the fourth. The Stetson offense exploded for eight runs, highlighted by a two-run double off the bat of sophomore Isaiah Barkett and a two-run single from sophomore Landon Moran, which brought the score to 10-7 in favor of the Hatters.

Stetson held South Florida without a run before building their lead to 13-7 the following inning. Meola extended the Hatters' lead with a one-out solo home run before Hylton and Dessureault hit back-to-back RBI singles.

The Bulls gained ground, closing the gap to 13-9 until Stetson added some insurance in the seventh. The Hatters picked up a run on Hylton's leadoff dinger, his first of the season, bringing the score to 14-9 in favor of Stetson.

The Hatters kept South Florida off the scoreboard before expanding their lead to 19-9 the following inning. The Stetson offense piled up five runs, highlighted by a two-run single off the bat of Dessureault and a two-run double from Hylton. 

Six Hatters had multiple hits in the ball game while Stetson got three-hit games from three different batters. Stetson out-hit the Bulls at a 16-13 clip as every Stetson starter reached base safely in the win. Furthermore, Stetson went 11-for-20 (.550) with runners in scoring position including four hits in six at-bats with the bases loaded.

The pitching staff limited South Florida to just 2-for-11 (.182) with runners in scoring position. They faced 39 South Florida batters in the game, forcing six ground balls and eight fly balls while striking out 10.

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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