PLYMOUTH MEETING, Pa. (Interstat) — Villanova built an early lead and rode strong relief pitching to an 8-2 victory over Saint John’s on Sunday afternoon at Villanova Ballpark at Plymouth, avoiding a sweep in the Big East series.

The Wildcats scored three runs in the first inning and never trailed, snapping a two-game skid against the Red Storm. Saint John’s had won the first two games of the series by scores of 3-0 on Saturday and 8-1 on Friday.

Villanova improved to 18-28 overall while Saint John’s fell to 28-23.

Will Parkinson was the top performer for the Wildcats, tossing 4 2/3 innings of relief and allowing only one hit with no earned runs and one strikeout. He entered in the third inning after starter Jake Francis had worked two scoreless frames, and Parkinson held Saint John’s scoreless until the eighth.

Carter Richey drove in three runs for Villanova, going 1 for 3 with a sacrifice fly in the fifth inning and a two-run single in the sixth. Brayden Leonard went 2 for 4 with an RBI.

Saint John’s managed just seven hits against four Villanova pitchers. Jayder Raifstanger drove in one run on a sacrifice fly, and Lewis Rodriguez had an RBI single in the ninth.

The game’s pivotal sequence came in the bottom of the fifth inning. With the score 4-2, Villanova loaded the bases on a walk to Michael Whooley and a single by Larry Hotaling. Tyler Longoria relieved Saint John’s pitcher Thomas Harding, but Carter Richey lifted a sacrifice fly to right field, scoring Whooley to make it 5-2. After a strikeout, Austin Lemon pinch-hit and singled to left field, scoring Hotaling for a 6-2 lead. Aidan Barry followed with a single, but JoJo Montgomery grounded out to end the inning.

Villanova added two more runs in the sixth off Saint John’s reliever Dylan Johnson. Collin Quintano walked, Whooley singled and Hotaling was hit by a pitch to load the bases. Richey then singled to left field, driving in two runs to extend the lead to 8-2. Hotaling stole third and Richey was caught stealing, but the damage was done.

Saint John’s had taken an early 2-0 lead in the first inning on a two-run single by Collin Quintano, but the Red Storm were unable to sustain any offensive rhythm. Parkinson entered in the third and retired eight of the first nine batters he faced, striking out one.

The Red Storm’s best chance to rally came in the top of the eighth. Rob Mansour and Lewis Rodriguez walked, and Jon LeGrande walked to load the bases with one out. Raifstanger hit a sacrifice fly to right, scoring Mansour to cut the deficit to 8-3. But Shaun McMillan grounded into a fielder’s choice and Adam Agresti grounded into another fielder’s choice to end the inning.

In the ninth, Saint John’s scored once more. Ayden Frey singled, Rob Mansour singled and Lewis Rodriguez singled to left, scoring Frey to make it 8-4. Matthew Kahn relieved Bobby Finn and got Jon LeGrande to single, loading the bases with one out. But Jayder Raifstanger lined out to the pitcher, and the game ended when Kahn induced a flyout.

Saint John’s used five pitchers. Victor Frederick started and allowed three earned runs on three hits over three innings, striking out two. Ian Mowad pitched two scoreless innings with no hits and one strikeout. Tyler Longoria allowed one run on one hit in one inning. Dylan Johnson gave up two runs on two hits in one inning.

Villanova’s Jake Francis threw two scoreless innings, allowing two hits with one strikeout. Bobby Finn allowed one earned run on three hits in 1 2/3 innings. Matthew Kahn pitched one-third of an inning, allowing one hit.

The Wildcats outhit the Red Storm 12-7.

Interstat’s game simulator had projected a final score of Saint John’s 7, Villanova 5, and the Interstat ELO system gave Saint John’s a 71.60 percent probability to win.