Houston, Texas – It took an extra day, but the Fordham baseball season finally got underway on Saturday, as the Rams split a doubleheader at Houston Baptist, winning game one, 4-3, while falling in game two, 13-5.
In game one, Fordham's
Luke Stampfl recorded his first career four-hit game, while
Reiss Knehr tossed 3.2 innings of scoreless relief, as the Rams pulled out a 4-3 win over the Huskies.
After HBU took the initial lead in the first inning, Fordham scored twice in the fourth inning to take a 2-1 lead. With one out,
Justin Bardwell and Stampfl connected on back-to-back singles to put runners at the corners.
Brian Goulard then doubled to left to score Bardwell, while
Ryan Jennings plated Stampfl with a ground out.
The Huskies regained the lead in the sixth, as HBU loaded the bases with one out and received an RBI-single by T. Depreta-John and a sacrifice fly by Spencer Halloran to regain a 3-2 edge.
The Rams then rallied with a bases loaded situation of their own in the eighth inning.
Jason Lundy started the frame with an infield single, with
Mark Donadio being hit by a pitch and
Matthew Kozuch drawing a walk. HBU would go to the bullpen, bringing in J.T. Newton. Newton got Bardwell to hit a ground ball to short, but the Huskies could not complete the double play as the throw from second to first went wild, allowing both Lundy and Donadio to score for a 4-3 edge.
Fordham reliever
Reiss Knehr then locked down the win for Fordham, getting an around the horn double play in the ninth to end the game.
Knehr (1-0) threw 3.2 innings of scoreless relief, allowing four hits to get his first win of the season.
Mike Cowell got the start after missing his entire freshman season, but was solid, giving up one run on four hits in four innings with four strikeouts.
David Wright also made his return to the hill after missing last season. He gave up two runs on three hits in 1.1 innings of relief.
At the plate,
Reiss Knehr
Stampfl was a perfect 4-for-4 with a run scored for his first career four-hit game, while Bardwell and Goulard were both 1-for-4 with an RBI.
In game two, HBU jumped on Fordham starter
Jimmy Murphy right out of the gate, scoring eight times over the first three innings for an 8-0 lead.
Fordham cut the lead in half by the fifth inning. Stampfl delivered an RBI-single in the fourth, scoring
Alvin Melendez, who reached on an error and moved to second on a walk to Lundy. Then in the fifth, after singles by
Pat Gardner and
Justin Machado, Melendez connected on a three-run home run to left for the first of his career.
However, the Huskies would score once in the sixth and four times in the seventh to extend the lead to 13-4.
The Rams' final run came on an RBI-single by
Billy Godrick, scoring Goulard.
For Fordham, Goulard recorded his first career multi-hit game, going 2-for-4 with a run scored, while Melendez was 1-for-4 with a home run, two runs scored, and three RBI. On the hill, Murphy (0-1) took the loss, allowing seven earned runs on nine hits in 2.1 innings of work.
The two teams will conclude their three-game series on Sunday at 2:00 PM ET.
