Stetson Hatters busy

By Roger Gilmore
BEACON SPORTS EDITOR

posted Apr 28, 2009 - 10:23:27am

Over the weekend, the Stetson Hatter baseballers were in North Carolina to face the Campbell Camels in three Atlantic Sun Conference games.

Eight of the next nine games will be played on Melching Field at Conrad Park, beginning at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, with the Bethune-Cookman University Wildcats in town, followed at 6 p.m. Wednesday by

the Florida International University Golden Panthers, with both games non-conference action.

This weekend, the University of North Florida Ospreys will be here for three A-Sun tests, and at 6:30 p.m. May 6, the Hats will play at the University of Central Florida, followed by East Tennessee State University here for three conference games May 8-10, with the last date being Senior Day.

A three-game A-Sun clash is set for May 14-16 at Florida Gulf Coast University to end the regular season. Stetson hosts the A-Sun Tournament May 20-23.

Earlier last week, the Hatters were on the road at UCF, where they held a 10-0 lead going into the bottom of the fourth inning, only to have the Knights rally for a 13-12 non-conference victory. UCF is now under Head Coach Terry Rooney, a former Stetson pitching coach.

The Hats clouted three home runs and outhit their hosts, 13-10, but seven walks and a hit batter, along with three errors, hurt SU.

In a nine-run fourth-inning highlight, the Hatters surged with nine hits and an UCF error, with only one runner left on base. A five-run eighth inning by the Knights featured only four hits, and a couple of bases on balls.

UCF used six pitchers, and the Hatters seven in the game. David Burns started for SU working three-and-a-third innings giving up just three runs, with one hit, a walk and two strikeouts. Tucker Donahue, Ian Thompson, Blake Marsocci, Ryan Sweat, Nick Bohne (1-1) and Travis Stortz all toiled briefly.

Casey Frawley showed the way at the plate for the Hats with his ninth home run, along with a double and a single. Jeremy Cruz stroked a trio of singles.

Aaron Crittenden clouted his eighth home run and a single, as did Sean Emory. It was the eighth four-bagger for Crittenden, and his fourth in as many games, while Emory cracked his first. Jeff Simpson, Nick Rickles and Mark Jones chipped in with singles.

Stetson carried an 8-10 A-Sun record, and an overall, 17-23, mark into their weekend action, with the Camels standing at 5-12 and 21-17, respectively.

A-Sun teams had non-conference action Wednesday. The University of South Carolina Upstate lost to Charlotte, 17-7; Mercer nipped Savannah State, 6-5; Belmont downed Austin Peay, 7-1; Florida Gulf Coast University lost, 13-7, to No. 11 University of Miami; and East Tennessee State bested Radford, 13-11.

— info@beacononlinenews.com

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