HUNTSVILLE, Texas (Interstat) — Tate Hickman pitched six strong innings and the Sam Houston Bearkats broke open a close game with a four-run fourth inning, rolling to an 8-1 victory over the Delaware Blue Hens on Sunday afternoon at Don Sanders Stadium.

The Conference USA game, which started in the afternoon and extended into the evening, saw Sam Houston improve to 23-29 overall while Delaware dropped to 17-34. The Bearkats completed a three-game series sweep, having won 5-4 on Saturday and 13-2 on Friday.

Sam Houston outhit Delaware 10-6. The Bearkats also recorded two sacrifice hits, while the Blue Hens grounded into three double plays.

Hickman, the top star for Sam Houston, allowed four hits and no earned runs while striking out two over six innings. He bounced back from a rough outing May 3 at Kennesaw State, where he gave up five earned runs in three innings. Hickman was replaced by Zak Johnson to start the seventh.

The Bearkats struck first when an error by Sam Houston shortstop Hunter Alvord in the top of the first allowed Sal Mineo to reach, and Mineo eventually scored on a fielder’s choice and a single by Jeremy Wolf. Sam Houston answered in the bottom half. R. Franden doubled, advanced on a sacrifice bunt and scored on a single by Caleb Cotton to tie the game 1-1.

After the teams traded scoreless innings, Sam Houston took the lead in the third. J. Martinez singled, moved to third on a single by Franden, and scored on a sacrifice bunt by J. Curtis. The Bearkats led 2-1.

The game turned in the fourth. With reliever Doug Marose on the mound for Delaware, Alvord led off with a solo home run to left field, a 413-foot blast with an exit velocity of 105 mph. W. Baker singled, S. Bazmore singled, and Kirby Orth was hit by a pitch to load the bases. A sacrifice fly by Martinez brought in Baker. After a walk to Franden, consecutive wild pitches by Marose allowed Bazmore and Orth to score, stretching the lead to 6-1.

Delaware managed only one more run, in the eighth. L.T. Cockrill led off with a ground-rule double, moved to third on a flyout, and scored on a single by Jeremy Wolf. But the Bearkats answered in the bottom half. Orth hit a two-run homer to right field, scoring Bazmore, who had been hit by a pitch. The home run traveled 404 feet with an exit velocity of 101 mph.

Sam Houston used four pitchers in relief. Ben Moyzan of Delaware pitched 2⅔ scoreless innings with three strikeouts. But Marose took the loss after allowing four earned runs in three innings.

Delaware’s offense struggled to sustain rallies. The Blue Hens left runners in scoring position in several innings, grounded into double plays in the first, second and third, and went 1-for-10 with runners in scoring position.

Sam Houston’s Caleb Cotton finished 2-for-4 with an RBI and a stolen base. Alvord homered and drove in a run. Orth was 1-for-3 with the two-run homer and two RBIs.

Delaware next hosts Western Kentucky on May 14. Sam Houston hosts Houston Christian on May 12 before traveling to Louisiana Tech for a three-game series beginning May 14.

Interstat’s game simulator had projected a final score of Delaware 6, Sam Houston 4. Interstat’s ELO system gave Sam Houston a 56.40 percent probability to win.