April 13, 2012

Fordham-Dayton Game Notes

Dayton, Ohio - The Fordham Rams conclude a five-game road swing this weekend when the team travels to Dayton, Ohio, for a crucial three-game conference series against the Dayton Flyers at Time Warner Cable Stadium. Fordham enters the game after losses to Rutgers and Manhattan earlier in the week, but have won five consecutive league games.

Dayton is also playing well in league play, after sweeping Charlotte last weekend at Charlotte.

PROBABLE STARTERS:
Friday - Fordham - RHP Daniel Munday (2-2) vs. RHP Mike Hauschild (4-1) | | Live Video
Saturday - Fordham - RHP Chris Pike (3-0) vs. TBA | | Dayton Radio
Sunday - Fordham - RHP Joseph Charest (3-5) vs. TBA | | Dayton Radio

SCOUTING DAYTON: The Flyers are 15-19 on the season with a 6-3 mark in the Atlantic 10 Conference.

The team is batting .297 this season with a 5.78 team ERA. Dayton is led by All-Conference player Brian Blasik, who leads the squad in batting average (.352), hits (50), doubles (18), and stolen bases (21). C.J. Gillman and Bobby Glover bring the power numbers to the line-up, as Gillman has a .343 batting average with four home runs and 37 RBI, while Glover has a .326 average, six home runs, and 24 RBI.

On the hill, RHP Mike Hauschild will get the start on Friday, with the other two probable starters up in the air. Hauschild is a team-best 4-1 with two complete games this season to go with a 5.09 ERA and 48 strikeouts in 58.1 innings pitched.

Burny Mitchem could be seen as a starter or a reliever in any game this weekend. He has started six of his 11 appearances, posting a 2-4 record and has a team-high two saves.

WE'RE GOING STREAKIN': Mike Mauri has a career-high six game hit streak, heading into Tuesday's game. He was batting .435 (10-23) with six RBI, six runs scored, and three stolen bases in that stretch... Ryan Lee is batting .417 over his last six games with three runs scored and three RBI... Matthew Cianci is batting .400 (6-15) in his last six games,posting six runs scored... Stephen McSherry has six RBI in his last six games, while hitting .389... Joseph Charest is 3-1 with two complete games in his last four starts, posting a 2.12 ERA and a .155 opponent batting average in 34.0 innings pitched. He has also taken no-hit bids into the sixth inning or beyond twice in those four starts... Chris Pike is 2-0 in his last four starts with a 3.13 ERA and 17 strikeouts in 31.2 innings pitched... Jeremy Adel has a win, three saves, and a 1.80 ERA in his last nine appearances.

THE "A" TEAM: When the game has been on the line, Fordham has gone to the "A-Team" duo of Jeremy Adel and Rich Anastasi to shut the door in the closing innings.

In games won by the Rams, Adel is 2-0 with five saves, a 0.96 ERA, and a .188 opponent batting average, while Anastasi is 2-0 with two saves, a 0.90 ERA, 11 strikeouts, and .243 opponent batting average.

CLOSING IN: Two of the Fordham seniors are slowly closing in on some career milestones over the coming weeks.

Senior Brian Kownacki is creeping up on 200 games played and 200 career hits. He currently stands at 188 games played, which is 9th all-time at Fordham, while collecting 196 hits, which is 14th all-time. He is also among the career leaders in triples with 10, which is tied for eighth on the career list.

Senior Ryan Maghini had a milestone of his own during the Temple series, as he surpassed 100 consecutive starts. He has 103 entering this week. His last non-start was the back end of a doubleheader against Columbia on April 28, 2010.

UPCOMING GAMES: The Rams return home on April 17th, when the team hosts Iona at 7:00 PM. Fordham then host La Salle for a three-game series from April 20-22 at Houlihan Park. Throughout the weekend, Fordham will be raising funds for the Wounded Warrior Project.