BRIDGEPORT, Conn. (March 26, 2024) – Hot starts have become something of a theme for the Sacred Heart University baseball team in recent weeks, and Tuesday afternoon was no different. Two in the first put the Pioneers out front to stay and three more in the fourth made it stick, as SHU took care of its future MAAC conference-mate Marist, 6-3, in non-conference play at Veterans Memorial Park. Sacred Heart (11-11) has won four straight and seven of its last eight to surge back to the .500 mark.
 
After right-hander Jake McDowell (Brookfield, Conn.) faced the minimum in the top half, the Pios jumped right on Marist senior right-hander Brian Yetter in the bottom of the first inning for two runs on three hits. Gavin Donohue (Melrose, Mass.) walked and eventually made his way to third base with one out, before Zack Kovalchik (Archbald, Pa.) fisted a single into left field to open the scoring. Kovalchik would then motor all the way around from first to score when Tyler Galletti (Plainview, N.Y.) laced a double down the right-field line and into the corner.
 
Marist (7-16) got one back in the top of the fourth. Justin Kapuscinski walked leading off, went first-to-third on a single to right-center by Marco Ali and scored on a line-drive sacrifice fly to right field by Bayram Hot. Right fielder Alex Ungar (Ronkonkoma, N.Y.) got a little turned around on the play, but recovered to make a twisting, leaping grab to keep the situation from deteriorating.
 
SHU immediately extended the lead with three in the bottom half of the fourth, against right-hander Andrew Fierro. Dennis Gamester (West Haven, Conn.) led off with an infield single and wound up on second as Hot airmailed the throw from shortstop. Gamester went to third on a sacrifice bunt by Charlie Tallman (Fair Haven, N.J.) and scored when JW Fitzgerald (Westport, Conn.) knocked a single through the right side of the infield. Fitzgerald moved to second on a wild pitch and scored on a line-drive single to center by Donohue. Kovalchik drove in the inning's final run with an RBI fielder's choice.
 
From there, Marist picked up a single run in the fifth, as Lewis Rodriguez walked and later scored on a wild pitch. The Pios got it back in the sixth, when Fitzgerald walked and later scored on a two-out error. Marist struck again in the seventh, to create the 6-3 final, as Ethan Conrad striped a one-out triple into the right-field corner and scored on a sacrifice fly to right by Ali.
 
McDowell was solid for the first 3.2 innings, but did not factor in the decision. He allowed one run on two hits, walked two, hit a batter and struck out three. Left-hander Jonathan Peterson (Florham Park, N.J.) followed with two innings of one-run relief to win (1-1) out of the bullpen. He allowed one run on two hits as well, walked two, hit a batter and struck out two. Right-hander Charlie Costello (Hopewell Junction, N.Y.) worked a perfect ninth with one strikeout to notch his first save of the season.
 
On the other side of the ledger, Yetter (0-1) lost after surrendering two runs on three hits and two walks in the first, and mixed in a pair of wild pitches for good measure. Eight Marist pitchers combined to issue six walks and throw six wild pitches.
 
SHU hosts LIU in a Northeast Conference series this weekend. The trio of games is currently scheduled for Thursday through Saturday at the Vet, but schedule changes are expected with wet weather in store for Thursday.