COLUMBIA, S.C. (Interstat) — The South Carolina Gamecocks shook off an early three-run deficit with a steady offensive onslaught, defeating the Presbyterian Blue Hose 9-3 in nonconference baseball action Tuesday night at Carolina Stadium.

The Gamecocks (20-22) used a 10-hit attack, including three home runs, to overcome a first-inning blast from Presbyterian’s Matthew Rollison. The Blue Hose (9-32) managed only four hits total, with three coming in the first two innings.

Presbyterian struck immediately against South Carolina starter Jackson Dudley. After a strikeout and a hit batter, first baseman Matthew Rollison connected on a two-run homer to left field, providing the Blue Hose a 3-0 lead before many fans had settled into their seats.

South Carolina began chipping away in the bottom half of the inning. An RBI groundout from Talmadge Harman scored leadoff man Austin Evans, cutting the deficit to 3-1. The Gamecocks then pulled within a run in the second without a hit, as Parker Sutter scored on a wild pitch.

The most important sequence of the game arrived in the third and fifth innings, where South Carolina’s offense seized control. In the bottom of the third, shortstop KJ Scobey launched a two-run homer to center field, scoring Harman and giving the Gamecocks their first lead at 4-3.

They broke the game open in the fifth. A two-out rally featured four consecutive hits, including an RBI single from Sutter, a run-scoring double from Ethan Lizama and another RBI double from Luke Yuhasz. The surge extended South Carolina’s advantage to 8-3, effectively putting the game out of reach.

Lizama added a solo home run in the seventh inning for the final margin.

The story on the mound for South Carolina was the stellar relief work that silenced Presbyterian after its early outburst. Connor Chicoli, named the top star for the Gamecocks, entered to start the second inning and delivered four shutout frames. He allowed just two hits and struck out four, stabilizing the game and earning the win. His performance was a rebound after a tough outing against Mississippi State last Saturday.

Following Chicoli, the Gamecocks’ bullpen was dominant. Parker Marlatt struck out four in his lone inning of work, and four other relievers — Hudson Lee, Elijah Foster, Cole Gregoire and Cooper Parks — combined for three perfect innings with five strikeouts to close out the victory.

For Presbyterian, starter Trey Meredith took the loss, surrendering four runs on five hits over three innings. Reliever Bauer Burkart provided a bright spot with a scoreless sixth inning.

The Gamecocks’ victory moved them back within two games of the .500 mark as they prepare to host Kentucky in a Southeastern Conference series starting Friday. Presbyterian, mired in a difficult season, will open a Big South Conference series at home against Radford on Friday.

The result aligned with pregame projections, though the final margin was wider than expected. Interstat’s game simulator had projected a 4-3 South Carolina win, and its ELO system gave the Gamecocks an 86.5% probability of victory.