Connecticut at Seton Hall preview

SOUTH ORANGE, N.J. (Interstat) — Connecticut (28-22, 12-10 Big East) visits Seton Hall (15-26, 8-14) on Saturday afternoon at Owen T. Carroll Field for the middle game of a three-game Big East series. First pitch is scheduled for 1 p.m. under cloudy skies and 61 degrees.

The Huskies opened the series with a 4-3 victory Friday, handing the Pirates their seventh loss in nine games. UConn won despite being outhit 7-4, leaning on a strong pitching performance from right-hander Charlie West.

West, a junior, will start Saturday for Connecticut. He allowed no hits and three earned runs over six innings Friday, striking out eight, though he walked four and hit two batters. That start capped an inconsistent stretch: West gave up seven earned runs on eight hits in five innings in a loss to East Tennessee State on May 1, but on April 24 he threw eight shutout innings with 13 strikeouts at Georgetown. On April 17 he took a hard-luck loss against St. John’s despite allowing just two earned runs over eight innings.

Seton Hall counters with right-hander Steven Svenson, who also pitched Friday. Svenson took the loss despite quality work: 6⅓ innings, four hits, one earned run, four strikeouts and one walk. He has been the Pirates’ most consistent arm, but has received little run support. In his other recent starts, Svenson allowed five earned runs in five innings at Butler on May 1 and two earned runs over five innings in a win over Villanova on April 24. His ERA over his last four starts sits at 3.66.

The series continues a stretch of 10 consecutive conference games for both teams. Connecticut, winners of three of its last four, is projected by Interstat to win Saturday 7-3.

Key players from Friday’s game included Connecticut first baseman Jackson Marshall, who went 1-for-4 with a home run and an RBI, and reliever Paxton Meyers, who threw three scoreless innings with two strikeouts. For Seton Hall, first baseman Frankie Scravanic went 3-for-4 with two RBIs, and reliever Ryan Reich tossed 1⅔ hitless innings.

Connecticut’s next game is the series finale Sunday at Seton Hall, then a nonconference game Tuesday against Northeastern at home. Seton Hall continues its homestand Sunday against UConn before traveling to Georgetown for a three-game set starting May 14.

The Huskies and Pirates have played 10 times since 2022, with Connecticut holding a 7-3 edge.