Baseball Takes Opener at George Mason

Fairfax, Va. – (May 3, 2019) – Fordham's Jake MacKenzie had the go-ahead RBI-double in the top of the tenth inning, while three Fordham pitchers totaled 17 strikeouts, as the Rams opened their series at George Mason with a 6-3 win in ten innings at Spuhler Field in Fairfax, Virginia.
 
With the win, Fordham improved to 28-20 on the year, 9-7 in the Atlantic 10, while George Mason fell to 18-27 on the year, 4-12 in the league.
 
George Mason started off the game with a 1-0 lead in the first, as Brady Acker hit a one-out double off the left field wall, and then scored on a double off the right field wall by Bailey Klein.
 
Fordham answered with a run in the second to tie the game at one.  Justin Bardwell and Jason Coules reached base on a single with Nick Labella drawing a walk to load the bases with one out.  Billy Godrick then sent a fly ball to the warning track in center for a sacrifice fly to score Bardwell.
 
The Patriots regained the lead in the bottom of the third at 3-1, as Greg Popatak hit a two-run home run to right, his third of the season.

 
The Rams scratched their way back to even at three in the top of the fifth, taking advantage of a couple of walks and an error.  Godrick drew a leadoff walk and was sacrificed to second by Jake Baker.  Godrick then advanced to third on a wild pitch with the throw going into left field, allowing him to score.  Alvin Melendez then drew a walk and stole second.  Jake MacKenzie then hit a chopper to third, which he beat out for an infield single, and allowed Melendez to score.
 
The game remained tied at three into extra innings, where Fordham took its first lead of the game in the tenth.  C.J. Vazquez led off with a single to right and was sacrificed to second by Melendez.  Jake MacKenzie then stroked a double off the wall in left to score Vazquez for a 4-3 lead.  Later in the inning, MacKenzie would score from third on a sacrifice fly by Justin Bardwell, while Labella singled home Tarabek from second to make it, 6-3.
 
Kyle Martin (4-2) finished off the win with a scoreless tenth to record the win, registering three of Fordham's 17 strikeouts in the game in his two innings of work.  Matt Mikulski went the first six innings, allowing three runs on seven hits in six innings and tying a career-high with 10 strikeouts.  Anthony Zimmerman was also perfect out of the bullpen with two scoreless innings and four strikeouts.
 
At the plate, MacKenzie was 2-for-5 with a double, two RBI, a run scored, and a stolen base, while Melendez was 2-for-3 with a walk, a run scored, and a stolen base.  Bardwell and Labella also had one hit and one RBI each.
 
The two teams will continue their series on Saturday with a noon doubleheader, as the weather forecast for Sunday has rain as a possibility.