Bronx, N.Y. – (March 21, 2024) – With wins in five of the last seven games, the Fordham baseball team looks to keep the good vibes going with a three-game series against the St. John's Red Storm, which will be a split series between Kaiser Stadium in Queens and Houlihan Park in the Bronx.
The schedule has also been adjusted due to Saturday's weather forecast. Game one and three of the series will be played at Kaiser Stadium on Friday and Monday, respectively, with game time slated for 3:00 PM. Game two will be at Houlihan Park on Sunday afternoon at 1:00 PM.
Fordham (7-13) enters the weekend off a 10-8 win over Hofstra on Wednesday afternoon, while St. John's (15-4) is on a 12-game win streak with the most recent victory being an 8-2 victory over Wagner on Wednesday.
PROBABLE STARTERS:
Friday – Fordham – RHP
Declan Lavelle (2-2) at St. John's – RHP Xavier Kolhosser (4-1)
Sunday – Fordham – RHP
Koen Smith (0-1) vs. St. John's – LHP Evan Chaffee (1-0)
Monday – Fordham – RHP
Aidan Dowd (1-0) at St. John's – RHP Mario Pesca (2-0)
SERIES HISTORY: This weekend, the Rams and Red Storm are scheduled for the 97
th, 98
th, and 99
th all-time meeting for the two New York based schools. The two teams will match-up for the first time since 2021, when the teams split a four-game series. St. John's leads the all-time series with a 55-40-1.
OPPONENT OUTLOOK: St. John's is off to their best start since 2017 at 15-4, highlighted by a season-opening win at #2 Florida. The Red Storm are knocking the cover off the ball with a .320 team batting average, led by Jimmy Keenan and Ben Beauchamp. Keenan, the reigning Big East Player of the Week, is batting .429 with 10 doubles, four home runs and 27 RBI, while Beauchamp has a .385 average with 26 runs scored, seven doubles, three home runs, and 14 RBI. St. John's has also been strong on the mound with a 4.98 team ERA and a .268 opponent batting average. Xavier Kolhosser is at the top of the rotation, posting a 4-1 record in five starts to go with a 4.44 ERA and 12 strikeouts in 26.1 innings pitched.
LAST TIME OUT (3/20): The Fordham baseball team used a little "long ball" and "small ball", as the Rams held off a late rally by the Hofstra Pride to earn a 10-8 win at Houlihan Park.
After picking up a 1-0 lead on the sacrifice fly by
Daniel Bucciero in the first inning, Fordham doubled the lead to 2-0 in the second inning, when
Nico Boza cracked a solo home run to center for his third of the year. The Rams once again doubled the lead in the third, courtesy of Bucciero and
Tommy McAndrews. Bucciero connected on a one-out double, stole third, and scored on an errant throw to make it 3-0. McAndrews followed with a solo home run to center field, his first of the season.
Fordham then extended the lead to 10-0 in the fifth, scoring six times despite poor weather conditions. The big hits of the inning were a bases-loaded triple by
Chris Genaro and an RBI-double by
Ryan Thiesse.
The rain then caused a short break in the game, which the Pride rallied around, posting three runs in the seventh, one in the eighth, and four in the ninth to pull within a 10-8 score with two outs. Fordham's
Connor Haywood was able to get out the late jam with a fly out to end the game and earn his second save of the year.
Aric Berg (2-2) recorded the win, pitching the opening two innings and finishing with three strikeouts.
Andres Perez also pitched two scoreless innings with three strikeouts with
Zach Karson and
Dominic Cunha each having a scoreless inning. At the plate, Genaro was 3-for-3 with a triple and three RBI, while Boza was 2-for-3 with a home run, two runs scored, and two RBI. Thiesse also chipped in three hits and two runs scored for the Rams.
WE'RE GOIN' STREAKIN': Cian Sahler has been hot over the last seven games, batting .429 (12-28) with six runs scored, a home run, and nine RBI…
Nico Boza has nine RBI in his last six games, while batting .409 with two home runs in that stretch…
Chris Genaro is hitting .409 in his last seven contests, posting five runs scored, a home run and eight RBI… In his first five appearances as a Ram,
Aidan Dowd is 1-0 with a 0.79 ERA and 18 strikeouts in 11.1 innings pitched…
Declan Lavelle has a pair of wins in five starts to go with a 3.46 ERA and 18 strikeouts in 26.0 innings…
Connor Haywood has two saves, a 2.70 ERA, and 13 strikeouts over his last eight relief appearances.
RAMSES CHALLENGE: Show your support for Fordham Baseball all season long by signing up for the Ramses Challenge! Whether it's wins, home run hits or strikeouts thrown during the 2024 season, now is the perfect time to give back to the program and its student-athletes. Make your pledge by going to
FordhamSports.com/RamsesChallenge.
WHO'S NEXT: The Rams are next in action on Wednesday, March 27
th, when they travel to Stony Brook for a 3:00 PM game.
