Baseball Keeps Homestand Rolling on Wednesday Against Wagner

Bronx, N.Y. – (March 10, 2020) – The Fordham baseball team looks to continue its recent success on Wednesday afternoon, when the Wagner Seahawks visit Houlihan Park.  The game is closed to the public, but fans will be able to view the game on ESPN+ as well as follow the live stats and Fordham baseball Twitter feed for updates.
 
Fordham (9-6) has won eight games in a row, which includes a 6-0 mark at Houlihan Park this year.  The Rams are fresh off a three-game sweep of the Iona Gaels, allowing just three runs in the series, while batting .390 at the plate.  Matt Tarabek and Jason Coules had big weekend's for the Rams, as Tarabek hit .571 with five runs scored and seven RBI against the Gaels, while Coules batted .600 with two doubles and five RBI.
 
Wagner (6-7) is looking for its third straight win on Wednesday, after taking the final two games at the ETSU Tournament with wins over Marist and Ohio U.  Offensively, Henry Martinez and Griffin Schneider lead the Wagner attack.  Martinez is hitting a team-high .295 with five runs scored and two RBI, while Schneider is hitting .293 with seven runs scored, three home runs, and nine RBI.
 
PROBABLE STARTERS/GAME COVERAGE:
Fordham - RHP Joseph Quintal (0-0) vs. Wagner – RHP Nick DeCarlo (0-2) // Live Video (ESPN+) | Live Stats | Twitter - @FordhamBaseball
 
SERIES HISTORY: Dating back to 1947, Fordham and Wagner have met 69 times with Fordham holding a 50-19 lead in the all-time series.  The Seahawks have gotten the better of the Rams lately, winning four of the last six match-ups since 2015.  Wagner won last year's match-up at Houlihan Park by a 3-2 score on March 13^th.
 
LAST TIME OUT: Behind two superb offensive showings and stellar pitching, the Fordham Rams swept a baseball doubleheader from the Iona Gaels by scores of 16-2 and 11-0 at Houlihan Park on Sunday afternoon.
 
In game one, Matt Tarabek, C.J. Vazquez, and Terrence Murray each drove in three runs, while all nine starters had at least one hit, as the Rams picked up a 16-2 win over the Gaels.
 
Fordham opened with a 3-0 lead in the second inning, getting a bases loaded walk by Billy Godrick and sacrifice flies by Matt Tarabek and C.J. Vazquez.  The Rams then broke the game open with an eight-run third inning, extending the lead to 11-0.  The rally started with the Rams getting a run on back-to-back-triples by Jake MacKenzie and Alvin Melendez, followed by Melendez scoring on a wild pitch for a 5-0 lead.  The Rams then re-loaded the bases getting a two-run single by Tarabek.  Later, Fordham got runs on an RBI-single by Jason Coules, an error, and a two-run single by MacKenzie for the 11-0 lead.
 
Fordham continued to add to the lead, scoring three times in the fourth and twice in the fifth for a 16-0 lead.  In the fourth, runs came in on an RBI-double by Vazquez and a two-run single by Terrence Murray, while the fifth inning saw an RBI-single by Vazquez and a sacrifice fly by Murray.  The score remained that way until the ninth, when Iona broke up the shutout with a two-run home run by Tyler Cannon for the 16-2 final.
 
Fordham's Cory Wall (2-1) recorded the win, pitching five innings of three-hit ball with five strikeouts.  Alex Hernandez pitched two scoreless innings of relief with three strikeouts, while Brandon Martin finished out the final two innings with two strikeouts.  At the plate, Vazquez was 2-for-4 with a double, two runs scored, and three RBI, while Tarabek and Murray each had three RBI.  Justin Machado scored a game-high four runs with Coules, MacKenzie, Melendez, and Nick Labella each picking up a pair of hits.
 
In game two, Jake Baker went 3-for-5 with two runs scored, while John Stankiewicz struck out nine, as the Rams completed the doubleheader and series sweep of the Gaels with an 11-0 shutout win.

 
Like game one, the Rams used early offense to jet out to a 6-0 lead by the second inning.  After scoring a run in the first on an RBI-single by Coules, Fordham scored five times in the second inning, highlighted by an RBI-single by Labella and a two-run home run by Matt Tarabek, his second of the season.
 
Fordham then added a run in the fourth on an RBI-single by Jake Baker, scoring Godrick from second after he was hit by a pitch and stole second base.  The Rams then scored twice in the fifth and sixth innings to go up 11-0.
 
That cushion was more than enough for the Fordham pitching staff as five pitchers combined for the seven-hit shutout.  John Stankiewicz (2-1) tossed the first five scoreless innings, allowing four hits and a walk, while striking out a season-high nine batters.  Gabe Karslo and Alex Henderson followed with one scoreless inning each, while Melendez and Garrett Crowley each had two strikeouts in their respective scoreless inning of work to complete the shutout.  In all, Fordham pitching recorded 15 strikeouts in game two.
 
At the plate, Baker finished a home run short of the cycle, going 3-for-5 with a double, a triple, an RBI, and two runs scored, while Tarabek was 1-for-2 with a home run and three RBI.  Coules had a hit and a pair of RBI, extending his hit streak to 12 games with Godrick going 2-for-2 with two runs scored, two RBI, and a stolen base.
 
HOME COOKIN': Dating back to last season, the Rams have won their last 13 contests played at Houlihan Park with the last home loss coming on April 19, 2019.  The win streak continued this past weekend, as Fordham swept a three-game series from Iona.  The key has been stellar pitching, allowing three runs or less in 11 of those 13 games.
 
WE'RE GOIN' STREAKIN': Sophomore Jason Coules continues to be red hot for the Rams, taking a 12-game hitting streak into Wednesday.  Over that streak, Coules is batting .524 with 12 runs scored, four doubles, a home run, 15 RBI, and four stolen bases…  Senior Alvin Melendez saw a 10-game hitting streak snapped in the final game of the Iona series, but has reached base in the last 12 games.  In his last 12 games, he is batting .395 with five doubles, 14 RBI, and five stolen bases… During the current win streak, the Rams are hitting .323 as a team to go with a 1.54 ERA… Nick Labella is batting .429 with 10 runs scored and four RBI in the win streak, followed by C.J. Vazquez at .385 with six runs scored, three doubles, and five RBI… On the mound, Melendez is 1-0 with a save in his last four appearances with 13 strikeouts in nine innings, while starters Matt Mikulski, John Stankiewicz, and Cory Wall are each 2-0 with double digit strikeouts and sub-2.00 ERAs.
 
WHO'S NEXT: Fordham finishes off its homestand on Friday with a game against St. John's at 3:00 PM, before playing two contests at St. John's on Saturday and Sunday afternoon.