By TOM ZEBOLD

USF Senior Writer

CLEARWATER – The Bulls jumped out to a 7-0 lead in the top of the fifth inning but couldn't finish the job against the rallying Huskies on Thursday night.

Stanley Paul scored on a wild pitch with the bases loaded to give eighth-seeded UConn an 8-7 walk-off win on day two of the Big East tournament. USF (36-21) would have had Friday off if it held onto the lead and now faces Rutgers in an elimination game 6 p.m. Friday back at Bright House Field.

UConn (32-26) started its tournament run with a 3-2 win over top-seeded Louisville and jumped back into Thursday's ballgame with a six-run fifth inning. The Huskies tied it up at 7 on a run-scoring sacrifice fly by Jon Testani in the eighth and capitalized on an error and two wild pitches in the final frame.

“I'm totally disappointment. That can't happen,” head coach Lelo Prado said.

The loss spoiled a hot night at the plate for a USF offense that collected 13 hits and made a ton of noise early on. The Bulls took a 2-0 lead into the fourth and busted the game open with a four-run frame. Alex Mendez hit a two-run double down the right field line before James Ramsay and Jimmy Falla added RBI doubles.

The Bulls pumped their lead up to 7-0 on an RBI single by Nik Alfonso, who was one of six USF players to finish with two hits.  

David Mahoney (2-2) earned the win by pitching 2 2/3 scoreless innings long after UConn starter Anthony Marzi was knocked out of the game with one out in the fourth inning.

USF now looks to beat Rutgers for a second time to keep its tournament title chances alive. Big East Rookie of the Year Jimmy Herget helped the Bulls start off strong by giving up one run on five hits in 7 2/3 innings of a 5-2 win over the Scarlet Knights late Wednesday night.