Peyton Williams/Georgetown Sports Information Timmy Jones blasts the ball for the Hoyas. He contributed in Georgetown’s win over aryland.

When the Georgetown baseball team met the University of Maryland this week, the two teams were moving in opposite directions. The Hoyas were in the midst of an 11-game losing streak, while the Terrapins had won five in a row.

Both streaks ended Tuesday, as Georgetown won its first game in nearly three weeks, defeating Maryland, 8-4, at Shipley Field in College Park, Md. Senior Pat Salvitti, making his first start of the year, pitched a complete game and sophomore Andrew Cleary went 4-for-4 with four runs batted in.

The win boosts Georgetown’s record to 7-20 overall, 1-12 in the Big East.

Georgetown’s scheduled game against George Washington on Wednesday was cancelled due to rain. It is the 11th game that has been cancelled this season due to inclement weather.

Both Maryland and Georgetown had to contend with miserable playing conditions on Tuesday. With temperatures in the 30s and the field in terrible condition after hours of morning rain, the atmosphere was less than ideal, but it had little effect on the Hoyas.

“No big deal,” Head Coach Pete Wilk said. “Both teams have to play on it. It had no effect whatsoever on the game.”

The game started inauspiciously for the Hoyas, as they left the bases loaded without scoring a run in top of the first inning.

Georgetown bounced back in the next inning to take a 3-0 lead. With one out, sophomore Jim Supple singled to right and made it to third when freshman Timmy Jones hit a single of his own. A throwing error by Maryland pitcher Jared Stuart brought in Georgetown’s first run and allowed Jones to advance to second. A single by junior Ron Cano put runners at the corners for senior Matt Carullo, who hit a sacrifice fly to left field that scored the Hoyas’ second run. Junior Michael Lombardi followed with a double to score Cano.

The Hoyas increased their lead in the top of the fifth inning. Cleary hit a leadoff double down the leftfield line then advanced to third on a groundout. A single to the left side by sophomore Billy Quinn scored Cleary and made it 4-0 in favor of Georgetown.

Meanwhile, Salvitti was cruising. He held Maryland to just one hit in the first four innings. The Terrapins did not mount a threat until the bottom of the fifth. A walk followed by two singles loaded the bases with one out. Salvitti was able to get out of the inning without giving up more than one run and kept the Hoyas ahead, 4-1.

Cleary gave Georgetown more breathing room in the seventh inning. After Lombardi reached on an error, Cleary sent a homerun to left field to extend Georgetown’s lead to 6-1.

The Hoyas piled on two more runs in the eighth. With the bases loaded and two out, Cleary singled through the left side to plate two runs and give Georgetown its biggest lead of the day, 8-1.

Cleary leads the team with eight homers and 28 runs batted in. In his last two games, he is 7-for-8 with three home runs, eight RBI and two doubles.

“He’s driving in runs when we need him,” Wilk said. “Most of his RBI the past couple of weeks have come with two outs, which is such an enormous lift for momentum.”

Maryland showed signs of life in the bottom of the eighth. The Terps opened the inning with consecutive singles, which allowed two runs to score when the next batter doubled to left. After retiring the next two batters, Salvitti nearly escaped without any further damage. But a throwing error by Supple let the runner on second score, making it 8-4 and extending the inning. Salvitti bore down and got the final out of the inning, and kept Maryland scoreless in the ninth to secure a much-needed win for Georgetown.

“I felt like I was carrying around a gorilla,” Wilk said. “We played above-average to outstanding defense, which was dictated by the pitcher’s tempo.”

Salvitti pitched a complete game, giving up four runs (three earned) on eight hits and five walks, while striking out eight. It was his first win of the season.

“He had an outstanding game,” Wilk enthused. “He commanded the strike zone with two pitches, sometimes three. He picked us up and put us on his shoulders. And Cleary caught and called a great game. Pat deserved to finish that game.”

“This was the first time in weeks that we’ve put a good pitching performance, strong defense and timely hitting together,” Wilk added. “Hopefully this is something we can build on.”

Georgetown faces Big East rival St. John’s this weekend in a three-game series at Shirley Povich Field in Bethesda, Md. Both Saturday’s doubleheader and Sunday’s game begin at noon. Junior Kevin Field (1-2, 6.92), sophomore Eddie Pena (0-4, 8.39) and freshman Warren Sizemore (3-3, 5.27) will be the starting pitchers in the series.