DELAND, Fla. - Following a 37-19 finish to the regular season, the Stetson Hatters took to the field for their first game of the ASUN Championship. Despite playing from the confines of Melching Field, the Hatters were the lower seed to #2 Kennesaw State, who had home advantage. Four Stetson players notched at least two hits, but the Hatters fell to the Owls 6-5 on Tuesday afternoon.

Senior John Modugno, now 0-3, got the ball to start for Stetson, who is now 37-20 on the season, and took the loss. Freshman Zane Coppersmith, an All-ASUN Second Team honoree, was a bright spot in the Hatters' pen, coming out of the bullpen and throwing two shutout innings, allowing no hits, with two walks and one strikeout.

The Hatters were trailing 4-0 in the fourth inning when they first put runs on the board. Stetson got an RBI single off the bat of junior catcher Gio Cueto, plating sophomore Isaiah Barkett from third base.

The Hatters deficit expanded to 6-1 before their offense got back on the scoreboard, cutting into that deficit in the sixth inning. Sophomore Landon Moran's run-scoring single highlighted an inning where Stetson scored twice, which brought the score to 6-3 in favor of the Owls.

Stetson kept the Owls off the board before narrowing the gap to 6-5 in the seventh. The Hatters notched two runs when a single from freshman Kyle Jones scored junior Yohann Dessureault and sophomore Jayden Hylton. The Hatters were unable to get any closer, as neither team scored again in the ballgame.

Despite the loss, the Hatters out-hit the Owls at a 12-7 clip. Four Hatters had multiple base knocks in the ballgame while Stetson went 5-for-12 (.417) with runners in scoring position.

The Hatters will have a day's rest before returning to the field as they take on the rival Austin Peay State Govenors at 10:00 AM on Thur., May 21 at Melching Field. As usual, the action will be streamed to ESPN+ and live stats will be available at GoHatters.com.

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.