Baseball Hosts La Salle for A-10 Series This Weekend

Bronx, N.Y. – Following its win over Albany on Wednesday, the Fordham baseball team continues a mini-homestand this weekend as the Rams host the La Salle Explorers for a three-game Atlantic 10 series at Houlihan Park.  Due to the weather on Friday, the two teams will play a single game on Saturday at 1:00 PM, followed by a doubleheader on Sunday at noon.
 
Fordham enters the contest at 9-11 overall, 1-2 in the Atlantic 10, after pulling out the series finale at George Mason last weekend.  La Salle is 3-18 on the year with a 0-3 mark in the league.
 
PROBABLE STARTERS/GAME COVERAGE:
Saturday – RHP Mike Cowell (0-2, 5.94) vs. LHP Luke Reilly (1-2, 2.35) // Live Audio | Live Stats
Sunday (G1) – RHP Jimmy Murphy (1-3, 4.38) vs. RHP Mike Anthony (0-3, 6.10) // Live Audio | Live Stats
Sunday (G2) – RHP Reiss Knehr (2-2, 4.29) vs. RHP CJ Pruitt (0-5, 7.36) // Live Audio | Live Stats
 
SERIES HISTORY: Fordham and La Salle have met 56 times previously, having been conference rivals in both the MAAC and the Atlantic 10, with the Rams holding a 33-22-1 edge in the series.  The two teams met last season with Fordham taking both ends of a Sunday doubleheader to win the series, after La Salle won the opening contest.
 
LAST TIME OUT: Behind a 14-hit barrage which included three-hit games from Matthew Kozuch and Matt Tarabek, the Fordham baseball team downed the Albany Great Danes, 7-3, on Wednesday afternoon at Houlihan Park.
 
Albany started the scoring in the top of the third inning, as Kenny Hayden reached on an infield single to short.  Hayden then stole second, where the throw went into centerfield, allowing Hayden to reach third.  He then scored on a sacrifice fly by Kevin Donati for a 1-0 lead.
 
The Rams answered with a four-run fourth inning to grab a 4-1 lead.  Fordham started the inning with three straight singles by Mark Donadio, Brian Goulard, and Ryan Mahoney with the last one by Mahoney driving in Donadio.  After Jason Lundy was hit by a pitch to load the bases, Pat Gardner drove in Goulard with a fielder's choice, while Jake Baker put down a safety squeeze bunt to plate Mahoney for a 3-0 lead.  Matthew Kozuch then ripped an RBI-single through the right side to score Gardner from second.
 
The teams exchanged runs in the sixth, making it a 5-2 Fordham lead.  Albany picked up their run on a wild pitch, while Kozuch delivered his second RBI-single of the game for Fordham.
 
Fordham added to the lead with two runs in the seventh.  Donadio was hit by a pitch to start the inning, followed by a double by Goulard to put runners at second and third with no outs.  After a strikeout, Lundy plated Donadio with an RBI-ground out to second, while Gardner singled home Goulard for a 7-2 edge.

 
Albany plated one run in the ninth, but it would not be enough as the Rams took the game by a 7-3 count.
 
Fordham's Brandon Martin (2-0) earned the win, pitching two hitless innings of relief with one strikeout.  Brian Weissert got the start, allowing one unearned run on three hits.  Kyle Martin tossed two innings of one-hit relief, giving up an unearned run, while Marc Bisogno (1 IP, 0 H) and Shane McDonald (1 IP, 1 R, 2 K) each threw one inning of relief.
 
At the plate, Kozuch was 3-for-5 with two RBI, while Matt Tarabek had his first three-hit game, going 3-for-5.  Donadio and Goulard each had two hits and two runs scored with Gardner going 1-for-3 with two RBI and a run scored.
 
MELENDEZ NAMED A-10 CO-ROOKIE OF THE WEEK (3/27): The Atlantic 10 Conference announced its weekly baseball award winners on Monday and Fordham freshman Alvin Melendez (Whitestone, N.Y./Cardozo)  was among the honorees as Co-Rookie of the Week, sharing the honor with VCU's Paul Witt.  It is Melendez first career weekly honor.
 
In two relief appearances this week, Melendez threw six innings of two-hit relief, posting a win and a 1.50 ERA.  After pitching a scoreless inning of relief on Tuesday against Iona, he came up big on Sunday in Fordham's 6-5 win over George Mason.  He threw five innings of one-hit relief, allowing one run and striking out a season-high five batters to earn his first collegiate win.
 
DEFENDING THE "HOU": The Rams are out to a 6-1 start in six home games this season, continuing a winning trend at Fordham's Houlihan Park.  Fordham has posted a winning home record in each of the last seven seasons, and since 2012, when Coach Leighton took over, Fordham is 82-53 at home, good for a .607 winning percentage.
 
WHO'S NEXT: The Rams will face Saint Peter's for a doubleheader on Wednesday, April 5^th, at Houlihan Park, beginning at 2:00 PM.  After that doubleheader, Fordham will travel to Saint Louis for a three-game Atlantic 10 series against the Billikens, April 7-9.