Etzel sparks Jacksonville’s 9-2 series-clinching win over Durham

Jacksonville ended the Durham series with a statement, riding Matthew Etzel’s five-times-on-base day to a 9-2 win Sunday at Durham Bulls Athletic Park. Etzel went 3-for-3 with a double, two walks, two runs scored and four RBIs, the kind of line that can carry a road finale all by itself and did exactly that for the Jumbo Shrimp.

The tone was set immediately against Durham opener Luis Guerrero. Jacksonville loaded the bases in a two-out first-inning rally and Etzel cashed it in with a two-run single to open the scoring. The Jumbo Shrimp kept pressing in the third, when Heriberto Hernández and Kemp Alderman singled, Alderman stole second, and Etzel ripped a two-run double down the right-field line to stretch the lead to 4-0. By then, Jacksonville had already turned the game into an uphill climb for Durham.

Durham did make a push in the fifth, trimming the deficit to 4-2, but that was as close as the Bulls got. Jacksonville answered, held the line and kept the game under control the rest of the way, turning a tense midgame stretch into a clean series-clinching finish. The win pushed Jacksonville to 17-16 and dropped Durham to 11-22.

Ryan Gusto gave Jacksonville the kind of start that makes a lineup’s job easier. He earned the win by working 6.0 innings, allowing two runs on three hits while striking out six and walking three. Zach McCambley finished it off in style, logging 3.0 scoreless innings with four strikeouts to pick up his first save. That combination gave Jacksonville exactly what it needed after the club had already beaten Durham 11-4 on April 29 following a 9-7 loss in the series opener on April 28.

For a Jacksonville club that describes itself as the 2025 International League and Triple-A National champion, this was the right kind of April-to-May bridge: one player exploding at the plate, a starter giving length, a reliever slamming the door, and a road series ending with no doubt about who controlled the night. Jacksonville now heads home to face Charlotte at VyStar Ballpark on Tuesday, with the confidence of a team that finished the job instead of letting Durham linger.