Ethan Darden admitted the nerves were flowing when he took the mound for No. 15 Clemson as its starting pitcher for Saturday’s game against No. 21 Arizona in the Shriners Children’s College Showdown at Globe Life Field in Arlington, Texas.

“Oh, there was (nerves). The first inning, I had to settle in there,” Darden told The Clemson Insider. “But that seven-run cushion, the nerves aren’t too much to overcome.”

Clemson broke out the bats and provided Darden with plenty of support – right off the bat.

The Tigers (2-0) plated seven runs on eight hits in the first inning en route to a dominant 16-5 victory over the Wildcats (0-2).

“Seven runs in the first inning – what else could you ask for? I could shout out each individual guy, but they all did a job that put some runs on the board,” Darden said. “So, I feel like going out there, it takes a lot of nerves off when your guys just go out there and put up runs and give you a little cushion.”

Not that Darden needed much cushion to work with.

The junior lefthander held Arizona scoreless across four strong innings of work, allowing just two hits and one walk while striking out six.

Darden said his outing went the way he wanted it to go, simply because the Tigers got the win.

“Yeah, anything I do, as long as you get the win, it doesn’t matter to me,” he said.

Along with the run support from Clemson’s offense at the plate, Darden was backed by a stellar defensive effort in the field.

“It’s great to have a bunch of older guys back there behind me and a bunch of athletes,” he said. “They make plays look easy, and it makes you fired up when they make plays behind you. So, I couldn’t ask for a better defense behind me.”

Darden, who began last season in the bullpen before joining the weekend rotation in late March, led the team in complete games and was first in the ACC in walks per nine innings pitched (2.03). In 11.1 innings pitched over six appearances in non-ACC regular season games, he allowed seven hits (.167 opponents’ batting average), one earned run (0.79 ERA) and four walks with 12 strikeouts.

The Rock Hill, S.C., native and Northwestern High School product said he had never pitched in a venue like he did on Saturday at Globe Life Field, home of Major League Baseball’s Texas Rangers.

“This is unbelievable,” he said. “I couldn’t even imagine pitching somewhere like this. It’s breathtaking.”