Dominick Bucko went 3-for-4 with a grand slam and Colin Clark allowed one run on two hits over six innings to lead the Youngstown State baseball team to an 11-3 victory over Bellarmine in the series opener on Friday at Knights Field.

The Penguins scored once in the first before opening things up with a six-run fourth inning. YSU pushed its lead to 11-0 with four runs in the sixth before the Knights plated one run in the sixth and two in the seventh to produce the final margin.

Youngstown State improves to 27-21 overall on the season while Bellarmine drops to 13-32. The Penguins have reached 27 wins for the first time since 2005.

Clark allowed one run on just two hits and struck out three batters over six innings to earn his sixth victory of the season. The senior southpaw allowed only a harmless two-out double in the second and a solo home run in the sixth. Clark retired the side in order in the first and fourth frames.

Eight different Penguins recorded a hit in the contest as YSU outhit Bellarmine 12-5. Bucko went 3-for-4 with a grand slam, two runs scored and a stolen base to pace the Penguins offensively. The senior became the first Penguin since Trey Bridis in 2017 to hit a grand slam. Padraig O'Shaughnessy, who also went yard for YSU, walked twice and drove in two runs. Turner Grau went 2-for-4 with a triple and two RBIs while Phillip Glasser was 2-for-5 with a double and three runs scored. With his sixth triple of the season, Grau became the first Penguin since Lou Vassalotti in 1994 to record at least six triples in a season.

The Penguins jumped in front early with one run on two hits in the top of the first inning. Glasser hit one-out double down the left field line and advanced to third on a single by Bucko. Glasser was then able to score when Bucko stole second base to give YSU a 1-0 edge.

Youngstown State extended its lead to 7-0 with six runs on five hits in the top of the fourth inning. Padraig O'Shaughnessy led off the inning with a solo home run to right field before Lucas Nasonti kept the inning alive with a two-out single. Jeff Wehler followed with a single and Glasser walked to set up a two-out grand slam to right center field by Bucko. After Blaze Glenn walked, Grau delivered an RBI triple to right center.

The Penguins pushed their advantage to 11-0 with four runs in the top of the sixth inning. Glasser led off the frame with a single before Bucko and Glenn drew back-to-back walks to load the bases. Grau, Padraig O'Shaughnessy and Steven D'Eusanio then drew three consecutive bases-loaded walks to push three runs across. Nick Caruso followed with a sacrifice fly that brought home Grau for YSU's 11th and final run of the contest.

Bellarmine got on the board in the home half of the sixth when Chris Gambert hit a one-out solo home run to left field. The Knights added two runs on two hits and an error in the bottom of the seventh to make it an 11-3 game. Patrick Arndt recorded an RBI single and Jacob Mulcahy scored when Noah Nelson reached on a fielder's choice.

Travis Perry allowed two runs on three hits and struck out two batters over two innings of relief while Matt Brosky retired the side in order in the ninth.

Bellarmine starter Nolan Pender suffered the loss after allowing seven runs on nine hits over 3.2 innings. Gavin Braunecker surrendered three runs on two hits in 1.1 innings of relief while Steven Thom was responsible for one run on three walks without recording an out. Matt Craven allowed just one hit over four scoreless innings of relief.

Gambert and Mulcahy each had two hits to lead the Knights offensively.

The Penguins and Knights will continue their three-game non-conference series on Saturday at 2 p.m. Live audio will be available at YSNLive.com.