OLD WESTBURY, N.Y.—Three home runs in the first two innings made for a fast start offensively but Villanova (10-25, 3-5 BIG EAST) went on to fall by a final score of 24-6 to St. John's (21-14, 4-4 BIG EAST) at Angelo Lorenzo Memorial Field on Friday afternoon.  The teams have split the first two games of the series, with the Wildcats claiming a 5-1 victory yesterday in the opening contest. 
 
Sophomore center fielder Chris Rotondo (Redding, Conn.) and freshman designated hitter Nick Lorusso (Monroe, Conn.) hit back-to-back home runs with one out in the top of the first inning as Villanova jumped on Red Storm starting pitcher Ian Murphy.  Senior first baseman JP Radvany (Lawrenceville, N.J.) added a two-run shot in the second inning in a game that featured seven home runs in all between the two teams.  Murphy, who entered the game with a 1.82 ERA, allowed five hits and six runs (two earned) while walking three in three innings pitched.    
 
Radvany had two of the Wildcats eight hits on the day, while eight of the nine batters in the starting lineup reached base safely at least once.  Junior right fielder Ryan Toohers (Florham Park, N.J.) had a single a walk and a hit by pitch to extend his streak of reaching base safely to 23 consecutive games, while sophomore second baseman Pat O'Neill (Eagleville, Pa.) drew a pair of walks one day after hitting the go-ahead home run in a Villanova victory. 
 
St. John's answered the two home runs by the Wildcats in the top of the first inning with seven runs in the bottom half.  That barrage a leadoff home run to start the frame and a grand slam with still nobody out in the inning.  Villanova battled back with four more runs in the top of the second before being held off the scoreboard the rest of the way. 
 
Toohers reached on an infield single to start the second inning and sophomore left fielder Sam Margulis (Pennington, N.J.) walked to set the table for a Wildcats rally.  Rotondo reached on an error with one out in the inning that allowed Toohers to score from second, while Margulis later came home from third on a passed ball.  Rotondo moved to third on a wild pitch with two outs and Radvany hit his third home run of the season over the fence in right-center. 
 
Villanova has now hit 22 home runs in 2019, matching the 2016 squad for the most in a single season in the last decade.  The first two games of the series with the Red Storm have been a welcome boost for the Wildcats offense, which has totaled 11 runs on 13 hits – six for extra bases – after batting just .197 with nine total extra-base hits in the season's first six conference games against Seton Hall and Georgetown.  The home runs by Rotondo and Lorusso marked the second time this season that Villanova has hit back-to-back long balls; Timothy Lilly and Will Reiner combined to achieve the feat in the first inning against Mount St. Mary's on March 3. 
 
Toohers' streak of 22 straight games reaching base is the longest for a Villanova batter since Max Beermann reached in 24 straight games during the 2016 season.  The trio of Toohers, Margulis and senior catcher Doug deMarrais (Bernardsville, N.J.) all have on-base percentages of .400 or higher in BIG EAST play. 
 
Friday's game was played on the NYIT campus in Old Westbury.  St. John's left fielder Mike Antico led the Red Storm's barrage of runs with three home runs and finished the day 4-for-4 with two walks and seven runs batted in.  Two relievers for St. John's held the Wildcats to just three singles over the game's final six innings. 
 
The series finale on Saturday moves back to Jack Kaiser Stadium in Jamaica, with first pitch scheduled for 1 p.m.