Baseball Comeback Against VCU Falls Short in Extra Innings

Bronx, N.Y. – VCU's Steven Carpenter singled home pinch runner Alex Gransback in the top of the tenth inning, while Matt Jamer stranded the tying run on base in the bottom of the frame, giving the VCU Rams a 4-3 win over the Fordham Rams in 10 innings, to complete a baseball sweep at Houlihan Park on Sunday.
 
With the loss, Fordham falls to 18-18 overall, 7-7 in the Atlantic 10, while VCU improved to 25-15 on the year, 13-2 in the league.
  For the second straight day, VCU struck first in the top of the third inning, when Darian Carpenter connected on a two-run home run to left, his second of the series and ninth of the season.
 
Fordham cut the deficit to 2-1 in the fourth inning, as Justin Bardwell doubled down the left field line, moved to third on a single by Luke Stampfl, and scored on a single by Ryan Mahoney.
 
VCU answered right back, going back up by two, in the fifth.  Brett Willett had an RBI-single to score Steven Carpenter, who was hit by a pitch and moved to second on a ground out.
 
The score stayed that way until the eighth, when Fordham rallied to tie the game at three.  With two on and two out, Brian Goulard hit a ball to center that VCU's Logan Farrar dove for and missed, allowing Mahoney and Mark Donadio to score on a two-run triple.

 
The game remained tied at three, forcing extra innings.  VCU capitalized in the tenth, going ahead by a 4-3 count.  With two outs, Dylan Isquirdo and Farrar reached base on back-to-back singles off Fordham reliever Shane McDonald, which brought in Brandon Martin from the bullpen to face Steven Carpenter.  Carpenter then singled up the middle to score pinch runner Alex Gransback from second for a 4-3 lead.
 
Fordham had one last chance in the bottom of the tenth, as Bardwell singled to left and was sacrificed to second by Stampfl.  Matt Jamer then entered the game from the VCU bullpen and struck out Mahoney for the second out, while getting Goulard to ground out to first to end the game.

For Fordham, Bardwell was 3-for-5 with a double and a run scored, while Goulard was 2-for-5 with a double, a triple, and two RBI.  Mahoney also finished with a pair of hits and an RBI in the game.  McDonald (0-1) took the loss in relief, allowing one run on two hits in 2.1 innings of relief with two strikeouts.  Starter Reiss Knehr went the first five innings, giving up three runs on six hits with three walks and six strikeouts.
 
The Fordham baseball team will next be in action on Wednesday, April 26^th, when the Rams host Yale for a 6:00 PM contest.  This is a change from the original schedule.