Opening of Baseball Season Features Return of Special Ride
With the start of college baseball season this week, things are getting spruced up around Melching Field for a special group of visitors for the first Saturday of the season.
Yes, there will be some great college baseball featuring the Stetson Hatters, Notre Dame Fighting Irish, Delaware Blue Hens and Manhattan Jaspers, but the coaches, players and fans of the teams will be joined by another very special group.
Prior to Saturday’s game, Stetson Athletics, in partnership with The Hometown Foundation, will host the third annual Special Ride to the Park for area Miracle League and Special Olympians.
The Special Ride was first conducted in 2019 and, after being canceled due to COVID-19 in 2021, returns this year. The program provides special needs children with the experience of a lifetime as they load up in expensive sports cars, classic cars, muscle cars, fire trucks and more to ride through the streets of DeLand to Melching Field.
The 2022 ride is scheduled to begin at 2:30 p.m. with the route beginning on Hubbard Avenue, proceeding down Woodland Boulevard before turning east on Rich Avenue and then south on Alabama Avenue before taking a victory lap around Melching Field.
The riders will arrive on the third base side of Melching Field and will be welcomed outside the stadium by fans, student-athletes and anyone else who wants to cheer them on. They will enter the stadium along a green carpet where they will be treated like Hollywood royalty arriving for the Academy Awards, posing for pictures along the way.
Once inside the stadium, the riders will be involved in pre-game activities with players and coaches from both Stetson and Notre Dame before participating in a ceremonial first pitch. They will then enjoy the game with family members in the stands. First pitch between the Hatters and Irish is scheduled for 4 p.m.
Season and single-game tickets for Stetson Baseball are available by contacting the Stetson Athletics Ticket Office at GoHatters.com/tix and clicking on baseball. Fans can also call for ticket information at 386-738-4287.
The Hatters will open the 2022 season on Friday afternoon at 3 p.m. against the Blue Hens from the University of Delaware. Friday’s evening contest will pit Notre Dame against Manhattan.
