Baseball Sweeps Twinbill from La Salle to Earn A-10 Series Win

Fordham's Luke Stampfl and Ryan McNally combined for 10 hits, four doubles, three home runs, and 10 RBI on Sunday, as the Rams swept a doubleheader from the La Salle Explorers, 9-0 and 6-2, at Hank DeVincent Field in Philadelphia, Pa.
 
With the sweep, Fordham improved to 16-16 on the year, 4-2 in the Atlantic 10, while La Salle fell to 10-23 overall, 2-4 in the conference.
 
Game one saw the Fordham offense erupt for nine runs, led by two home runs by Luke Stampfl, as the Rams shut out the Explorers, 9-0.
 
With the game scoreless through three innings, Fordham got the first run across in the fourth.  Stampfl got the rally started with a two-out double down the left field line.  After a walk to Mark Donadio, Jason Lundy singled through the left side to score Stampfl for a 1-0 lead.
 
The Rams added to their lead with four runs in the fifth for a 5-0 advantage.  Joseph Runco began things with a one-out single to center and stole second.  Matthew Kozuch then lined a triple over the centerfielder's head to score Runco from second.  Ryan McNally followed with an RBI-double off the left field wall, scoring Kozuch from third.  After a strikeout, Stampfl capped the inning with a two-run home run to left, his second of the season.
 
Fordham starter Greg Weissert, who had eight strikeouts and allowed three hits through 4 2/3 innings, was ejected in the fifth inning after hitting La Salle's Brian Tagoe with a pitch.  Anthony DiMeglio came on to get the final out of the fifth keeping Fordham ahead, 5-0.

 
The Rams tacked on three more runs in the sixth, extending the lead to 8-0, and then finished the scoring in the ninth inning, when Stampfl hit his second home run of the game, a solo shot to left, for the 9-0 final.
 
DiMeglio improved to 3-1 on the year, pitching 3.1 innings of one-hit relief with two strikeouts.  Reiss Knehr pitched a scoreless ninth to finish out the Fordham win.  At the plate, Stampfl was 3-for-5 with three runs scored, two home runs, and three RBI, while Runco was 3-for-5 with a double and a stolen base.
 
In game two, Ryan McNally had a home run and two doubles to lead Fordham to a 6-2 win in the nightcap.
 
Fordham once again struck first, netting two runs in the first inning.  The Rams loaded the bases with one out on walks to Justin Bardwell and Kozuch and a double by McNally.  Stampfl then delivered a two-run single to center, scoring Bardwell and McNally.
 
The Rams added to the lead in the second inning, as Joseph DeVito drew a walk, while Runco singled to right.  McNally then drilled a three-run home to left, his team-leading sixth of the year.

 
LaSalle would get on the board in the bottom of the sixth.  Connor Hinchcliffe and Tagoe connected on a single and a double off Fordham starter Ben Greenberg.  During the next batter, Greenberg would have to be removed with an injury, bringing on Joseph Serrapica from the bullpen.  After a popout, Jared Melone singled through the right side to plate both runners, making it a 5-2 game.
 
Fordham got a run back in the seventh to go back up four, 6-2, as Fordham took advantage of a La Salle error and scored a run on an RBI-single by Stampfl.
 
From there, Serrapica and Jimmy Murphy closed down the Explorers' lineup with three scoreless innings to post the win.
 
Greenberg (4-1) earned the win, giving up two runs on 10 hits with four strikeouts.  Serrapica went the next three innings, allowing just three hits with four strikeouts, while Murphy had a strikeout in his one inning of work.  At the dish, McNally was 4-for-5 with two doubles, a home run, and three RBI, with Stampfl went 2-for-5 with three RBI.
 
The Fordham baseball team will next be in action on Tuesday, April 12^th, when the Rams host Iona at Houlihan Park, beginning at 6:00 PM.