JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The Jacksonville baseball team clinched the series against Stetson with a hard-fought 4-3 victory on Friday night at John Sessions Stadium.
For the second consecutive game, the Dolphins jumped out to an early lead and held on late. Alex Walsh delivered another strong performance, earning his fifth win of the season after tossing six innings and striking out eight. The outing matched his longest of the season, equaling his start against UAB on February 27, while his eight strikeouts marked his second-highest total of the year. He now leads the ASUN in wins by a starting pitcher.
Austin Williamson and Dominic Pieto preserved the Dolphins' lead in relief, combining for three innings while allowing just one run. Jacksonville's pitching staff did not issue a single walk, marking the first time this season the Dolphins completed a game without allowing one.
At the plate, Sammy Mummau has continued his hot stretch, batting .412 with seven RBIs over his last five games.
Roger Vergara, Logan Baratta, and Abdriel Delgado each recorded multi-hit performances on Friday night.
How It Happened
The Dolphins wasted no time for the second straight game, pushing across a run in the first inning.
After being shifted three times the night before, Roger Vergara responded by slicing a single down the left field line. He advanced to second on a balk, and Derek Bermudez reached on an error after battling to a full count. With runners on the corners, Vergara came home on a passed ball to give Jacksonville an early lead.
Stetson answered with a solo home run in the second, but Walsh quickly settled in, retiring the next three batters, two by strikeout.
Jacksonville responded in the bottom half, as Mummau drove in Abdriel Delgado from third to regain the lead.
The Dolphins continued to apply pressure throughout the middle innings. Griffin Pomper singled home Logan Baratta in the fourth, and Baratta followed with an RBI single in the fifth to score Sam Grunberg, extending the lead to 4-1.
The Hatters mounted a threat in the ninth, leading off with a home run to left-center followed by a single. With the tying and go-ahead runs on base and no outs, Stetson threatened to rally.
However, Jacksonville's defense stepped up. Pieto struck out a Hatter on a full count, and on the same pitch, Pomper threw out a runner attempting to steal to quickly erase the threat. The following pitch resulted in a lineout to Archer Ogbourne in center field, sealing the win. Pieto earned the save for his efforts in the ninth.
After the game, Walsh noted his command across all three pitches, emphasizing his ability to fill up the zone with his fastball. "A lot of fastballs inside to strike them out, kind of freezing them," Walsh said.
The senior continues to anchor the Dolphins' staff in his Friday night role, leading the team in innings pitched and strikeouts.
Jacksonville improves to 15-16 overall and 4-7 in ASUN play with the victory. The Dolphins will look to complete the sweep in the series finale Saturday at 1:00 p.m. at John Sessions Stadium.
