On This Date: Hill & Mackin Throw No-Hitters for Baseball; Kingsbury Ties NCAA Stolen Bases Record

With the 2020 spring sports season canceled by the COVID-19 outbreak, we at Fordham have decided to dig back through our archives and provide our fans with content on some of the outstanding teams and student-athletes who have graced Rose Hill over the years
 
April 11, 1963 – After being a part of a no-hitter as a member of the freshman team in 1961, lefty hurler Gerry Mackin made varsity history in 1963, pitching the ninth no-hitter in Fordham baseball history.  It was the first since Tom Casagrande in 1950.
 
The Rams defeated the Columbia Lions, 2-1 at Baker Field behind Mackin's pitching prowess as he outdueled Columbia's Ken McCulloch.  He did allow an unearned run in the game, which came home on an error, while striking out eight Lion hitters.
 
 
April 11, 1973 – Ten years to the day of Gerry Mackin's no-hitter at Columbia, Fordham freshman Billy Hill in his first varsity start matched the feat, tossing the 11^th no-hitter in team history in a 3-0 win over Saint Peter's.  To date, it is the last nine-inning no-hitter for the Rams.
 
"He was the whole story, he did a super job," said then head coach Gil McDougald to The Ram.
 
Hill was dealing, walking just two batters, while striking out seven in the win.  A total of three ball were hit into the outfield, two of which came in the ninth inning.
 
"Bill's fastball moves in on the right-handed hitter, but his curve ball makes his hard stuff even more effective,"said Jack Houlihan, his catcher that day.
 
After scoring a run on a double play in the second, the Rams added to the lead with two runs in the third on an RBI-triple by Joe Cork and an RBI-ground out by Bob Guinan for the 3-0 score.  Paul Pungello was the hitting star of the game, going 3-for-4 at the plate.
 
 
April 11, 2001 – The Fordham baseball team swiped 14 stolen bases, eight of which came from Bobby Kingsbury, as the Rams topped Wagner by a 5-1 score.

 
Kingsbury's eight stolen bases was a new school record and tied the NCAA single game mark by Bethune Cookman's King Lewis in 1994.
 
"I remember I only got one hit in the game - a seeing eye single in my last at bat, said Kings bury remembering the game.  "I stole second four times, third twice and home twice.  It was low scoring game and I'll never forget how upset Skip (Dan Gallagher) was because after I stole home the second time it was announced I set a record and that set him off since the game was so close!"
 
The Rams needed all those stolen bases, as the team managed only four hits in the game by Kings bury, Kurt Thomas, Ted Kearns, and Anthony Vega.  Vega also had a big part in the game as he scored twice and had three stolen bases. 
 
Aside from the performance on the basepaths, the pitching staff had a good day as well.  Derek Hucke earned the win allowing one run on three hits over five innings, while Anthony Santopolo (2 IP), Andrew Paolillo (1 IP), and John Baco (1 IP) combined to allow just one hit and seven strikeouts
 
"The coolest part about that game is it got me in Sports Illustrated for their Faces in the Crowd section," said Kingsbury.