Down 4-0 with three outs left in its first game against Seton Hall, the Georgetown baseball team looked like it would be in for a tough day.

But the Hoyas rallied just in the nick of time, squeezing out clutch hits and taking advantage of Seton Hall’s defensive mistakes to score seven runs and win, 7-4.

Georgetown (17-21, 5-7) went on to win all three games last week – the second by a 3-2 score and the third, 6-4 – to climb from last to ninth place in the Big East.

Seton Hall, meanwhile, is now 12-23 (4-11) at the bottom of the standings.

This sweep marks the second time in team history that the Hoyas have taken three-of-three from another Big East team. The only other time was April 21-22, 2001, when Georgetown swept Connecticut.

“That win, the momentum carried over,” Hoya senior starting pitcher Warren Sizemore said.

The bottom of the ninth inning started with an out for Georgetown. But a single followed. Then, a fielding error, a hit by pitch, and an RBI single from senior right fielder Mark McLaughlin – that’s one run.

The second out. But senior center fielder Timmy Jones singled to score two more and make it 4-3. Another error, and McLaughlin scores on it: tie game.

Up comes senior first baseman Ryan Craft. “He’s about the only one hitting the ball consistently,” Georgetown Head Coach Pete Wilk said.

Consistently, yes – Craft did hit 6-for-11 on the series – and deep out of the park. On a 2-2 count with two outs, Craft sent the ball flying past left field to score Jones, senior third baseman Drew Dargen and himself to win the game.

“It was kind of a miracle,” Craft said. “It was an awesome experience – definitely the best comeback I’ve been a part of.”

And his walk-off home run?

“That was kind of magical,” Craft said, cracking a grin.

On the mound, meanwhile, Sizemore allowed no walks while striking out five in his eight innings.

“Everything is dictated by the starting pitching,” Wilk said. “Tempo, energy – when that’s not there, we struggle.”

Though Sizemore did not get a decision, the conference recognized his robust performance with its pitcher of the week award. He leads the team with a 2.31 ERA.

“He goes out there, and our tempo and energy level is so high, because we know he can beat anybody,” Wilk said. “He attacks hitters. He’s been throwing great.”

The pitching staff got through the next two games OK, but the Hoyas began to feel the pinch in their two mid-week games. Georgetown dropped both its Tuesday and Wednesday games, one an icky 12-4 defeat at the hands of Mount St. Mary’s; the other, an 8-3 loss to George Washington.

“We couldn’t stop the bleeding,” Wilk said of the Mount St. Mary’s game, which included a six-run fifth inning for the Mount. “We never got a chance to get back in the game.”

The mid-week games were grueling for the strained pitching staff. On Wednesday Wilk had to call upon a walk-on, sophomore right-hander Ben McKean, to make his first career start.

“On-the-job training,” Wilk called it.

McKean gave up four earned runs and six hits in four innings, taking the loss.

After freshman Andy Ferich jumped in to throw an inning’s worth, senior shortstop Matthew Johnson and Dargen (the third baseman) had to come provide relief, pitching two innings each against George Washington. Both gave up two walks and a hit while striking out three in their unusual appearances.

Georgetown has only one day to recover before leaving for Cincinnati (20-15, 5-7). Both teams unsteadily hang on to the edge of the top eight – the cutoff to advance to the Big East tournament on May 23-28. The outcome of this series will define the momentum that these teams earn as they go into the home stretch.

Despite this week’s non-conference losses, the players were optimistic about the rest of their Big East games.

“Everything else is falling in place,” Craft said. “Once everybody gets intense, it snowballs.

“Forget about these two games and take the series. We’ve got something going here.”

The Hoyas’ first game of three against Cincinnati is tonight at 6:30 Eastern time in Cincinnati.

Big East Notes: No. 23 Notre Dame (28-8, 11-1) is on an 18-game winning streak. The last time the Irish lost a game was March 25, when they dropped the first game of a three-game series with the Hoyas, 8-3.