Baseball Downs Pittsburgh, Picks Up First Win

Box Score

The Rams' offense exploded in their first win of the year, as senior Tim Swatek went 3-5 with three RBI and a home run to lead Fordham in a 9-2 rout of the Pittsburgh Panthers.
 
Sophomore Ryan McNally had a spectacular day at the dish, also going 3-5 with three RBI.
 
In addition, leadoff hitter Joseph Runco registered a multi-hit day for Fordham, going 2-4 with an RBI
 
Sophomore Cody Johnson (1-0) picked up the win for the Rams as they improved to 1-2 on the year.
 
Runco led off the game with a single, and after advancing to second on a passed ball, moved to third when Matthew Cianci reached on an error by the shortstop.  With runners on the corners, Swatek smacked a single to center, putting the Rams ahead 1-0.  Following two consecutive outs, Cianci scored from third on a wild pitch before McNally belted a two-run double, giving the Rams a 4-0 lead after just a half inning of play.
 
Pitt (4-2) responded with a run of its own in the bottom of the first, but the Rams bats were working again in the top of the second, as Cianci knocked an RBI single to center, scoring Luke Stampfl and putting the Rams up 5-1 after one and a half.
 
The Panthers narrowed the Fordham advantage back to three in the following frame, but Runco hit a two-out, first-pitch RBI single in the fourth to move the Rams back ahead by four.
 
In the fifth, Swatek homered down the left field line to extend the Fordham lead by one more run, making it 7-2 in favor of Coach Leighton's squad after four and a half.
 
The Rams held the Panthers off the board for the remainder of the contest, adding on two more runs of their own for good measure and escaping the Palmetto State with a 9-2 victory over their ACC foes.