Box Score
It was only fitting on April Fools' Day that a pitcher would take the spotlight on Tuesday at Houlihan Park, and Fordham pitcher
Kirk Haynes, Jr. fooled a lot of opposing hitters in his best outing of the season. Haynes held the Albany Great Danes to just three hits over seven innings, as the Fordham Rams won their third straight game, 8-2.
With the win, Fordham improved to 11-13 overall, while Albany fell to 4-15.
Fordham got on the board immediately in the first, as
Tim O'Connor, replacing an injured
Matthew Cianci, made an immediate impact with a triple to right center to lead off the game.
Joseph Runco then plated O'Connor with a sacrifice fly to left for a 1-0 lead.
Albany knotted the game at one in the second inning on an RBI-double by Craig Lepre, but Fordham responded right away with two runs in the bottom half of the frame.
Brendan Maghini drew a leadoff walk, which was followed by an RBI-triple to right field by
Jason Lundy to give the lead back to the Rams.
Mark Donadio added to the lead with an RBI-ground out, scoring Lundy from third to make it, 3-1.
After Albany closed to within one in the fourth inning, Fordham scored single runs in the fifth and seventh inning to go ahead, 5-2. Runco drew a walk and stole second to start the fifth, and moved to third on a fly ball.
Ian Edmiston then put down a safety squeeze bunt to score Runco from third. In the seventh, Fordham loaded the bases on two walks and a bunt single, and Edmiston did the job again with an RBI-ground out to score
Ryan Phelan from third.
Fordham then capped the scoring in the eighth in a big way, courtesy of the long ball. With one out, Donadio hit a solo home run to left, the first of his career. After a dropped fly ball, pinch-hitter
Charles Galiano crushed a two-run home run to left, his second of the season.
The eight runs were more than enough for Fordham starter
Kirk Haynes, Jr. Haynes threw a season-high seven innings, allowing just three hits and two unearned runs to record his first collegiate win.
Cody Johnson (1 IP, 1 K) and
Makay Redd (1 IP) closed out the contest with two scoreless innings of relief.
At the plate, O'Connor was 2-for-5 with a triple and a run scored, while Edmiston, Donadio, and Galiano each drove in two runs.
The Fordham baseball team will next be in action on Wednesday, April 2
nd, as the Rams travel to Van Cortlandt Park to meet the Manhattan College Jaspers in the Battle of the Bronx, beginning at 3:30 PM.
