Baseball Completes Sweep of Iona

Bronx, N.Y. – (March 8, 2020) – 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.
 
With the doubleheader sweep, Fordham has won eight games in a row and moved to 9-6 on the year, while Iona fell to 3-11.
 
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.
 
The Fordham baseball team's next scheduled game is set for Wednesday, March 11^th, when the Rams host Wagner at 3:00 PM.