Baseball Heads To Florida For Second Week of Action

After an opening weekend in Atlanta, the Fordham baseball team will head a little bit further south for its second week of action.  The Rams will play at Florida Gulf Coast on Friday and Sunday in Fort Myers, Florida, as well as Illinois on Saturday.
 
The Rams enter the weekend at 1-2 on the year after falling to Georgia State and splitting a doubleheader with Georgia Tech at last week's Atlanta Challenge.
 
The first weekend saw a number of players get off to good starts, especially sophomore Luke Stampfl, who earned the first Atlantic 10 Player of the Week award of the season.  He hit .333 with two doubles, a home run, and seven RBI at the Atlanta Challenge, which including a five-RBI game in the win over Georgia Tech.
 
Other Rams that got off to good starts at the plate, included junior Charles Galiano (.455, 3 R), junior Ian Edmiston (.364, 2 RBI), and sophomore Matthew Kozuch (.300, 2 R, 2 SB).
 
On the hill, junior Jimmy Murphy and sophomore Kirk Haynes, Jr. were impressive in the Rams' win at Georgia Tech.  Pitching for only the second time since the end of his freshman season, Murphy tossed 5.1 innings, allowing three runs on six hits, while Haynes earned the win in relief, as he closed out the final 3.2 innings, giving up one run on three hits with four strikeouts.
 
This week, Fordham will face off against two schools it has never played before in Florida Gulf Coast and Illinois.  The Rams will go with the same probable rotation as last week with RHP Brett Kennedy on Friday, RHP Murphy on Saturday, and RHP Joseph Serrapica on Sunday.
 
Florida Gulf Coast enters the weekend at 1-3, winning once against Central Michigan in a four-game series.  Illinois is one of 90 teams still perfect, with a 4-0 mark.  Below is the breakdown of coverage for the games:
 
Friday at FGCU
Follow Live: Live Stats | Twitter - @FordhamBaseball
All-Time Series: First Meeting
Pitching Match-up:  RHP Mike Murray (0-1, 3.60) vs. RHP Brett Kennedy (0-1, 7.20)

Saturday vs. Illinois
Follow Live: Live Audio | Live Stats | Twitter - @FordhamBaseball
All-Time Series: First Meeting
Pitching Match-up:  RHP John Kravetz (1-0, 1.17) vs. RHP Jimmy Murphy (0-0, 5.07)
 
Sunday at FGCU
Follow Live: Live Stats | Twitter - @FordhamBaseball
Pitching Match-up:  TBA vs. RHP Joseph Serrapica (0-0, 8.11)