PLYMOUTH MEETING, Pa. – The Villanova Wildcats (19-11 overall, 7-9 BIG EAST) erupted for three runs on four hits in the bottom of the eighth inning to steal a victory from the Connecticut Huskies (23-16 overall, 7-4 BIG EAST) in a pivotal conference matchup on Friday afternoon. The comeback victory marks the fifth consecutive win for the Wildcats who are getting hot at the right time.
 
Similar to the previous innings, the Wildcats were facing another quick inning after two strikeouts and a one-out single from Nick Oar (Pleasant Hill, Calif.). However, Villanova rallied back-to-back singles from Chris Rotondo (Redding, Conn.) and Nick Lorusso (Monroe, Conn.) to plate their first run while moving up 90-feet by capitalizing on the Huskies defensive mistakes. Following a UConn pitching change, Ryan Toohers (Florham Park, N.J.) wore the first pitch he saw and set up Jack O'Reilly (Villanova, Pa.) to send a double down the right field line to plate two and give Villanova their first lead of the game.
 
With the momentum on their side, the Wildcats would turn to their bullpen to get the final three outs. Danny Wilkinson (Scotch Plains, N.J.) toed the rubber and allowed a leadoff double before a deep fly ball recorded the first out but allowed the runner to advance to third. Wildcats head coach Kevin Mulvey played the matchup game and went to right-hander Jimmy Kingsbury (Phoenixville, Pa.) to close the door. On the first pitch, Kingsbury earned a groundball to third baseman Jack O'Reilly who checked the runner before tossing across the diamond for the second out. With two outs and the tying run at third, Kingsbury worked ahead with a strike before Chris Brown sent a flyball down the right field line which Sam Margulis tracked down to end the game. The senior notched his 14^th appearance on the season while tallying his third save.
 
While both offenses tallied seven hits each, the starting pitchers for both teams were on cruise control in the beginning. Villanova right hander Gordon Graceffo (Cranford, N.J.) picked up his seventh win on the season following a career day on the rubber. The junior tossed eight innings while striking out a career-high 12 batters and scattering six hits. Graceffo fanned six Huskies through four innings while retiring eight consecutive batters. Following the performance, Graceffo lowered his season earned run average to 1.32 over 68.0 innings of work.
 
Connecticut starting pitcher Austin Peterson tossed six scoreless innings while striking out four. The Huskies were led offensively by Erik Stock tallying four hits on the afternoon.
 
The conference foes will square off for game two tomorrow, May 15 at Villanova Ballpark. First pitch is scheduled for 1:30 ET. The Wildcats will recognize their senior class on the field beginning at 1:15. Be sure to follow @VUBaseball on Twitter and @villanovabaseball on Instagram for updates throughout the season.