Bronx, N.Y. – (April 12, 2024) – Delayed by a day, the Fordham baseball team will be heading up to Amherst, Massachusetts this weekend to play a three-game Atlantic 10 series against the Massachusetts Minutemen at Earl Lorden Field. With no game on Friday due to the weather, the two teams will play an 11:00 AM doubleheader on Saturday, followed by a single game on Sunday at noon.
Fordham (11-20, 3-3 A10) hopes their good start to Atlantic 10 play continues after taking two of three games from Richmond in its previous series. UMass (10-18, 2-4 A10) thus far has lost two of three games in its first two series against VCU and Rhode Island.
PROBABLE STARTERS:
Saturday (G1) –Fordham – RHP
Declan Lavelle (4-3, 3.47 ERA) at Massachusetts – RHP Sam Belliveau (2-4, 6.31 ERA)
Saturday (G2) – Fordham – RHP
Aidan Dowd (1-1, 1.21 ERA) at Massachusetts – RHP Renn Lints (2-0, 5.79 ERA)
Sunday – Fordham – TBD at Massachusetts – RHP Robbie O'Connor (1-4, 6.55 ERA)
SERIES HISTORY: Heading into the weekend, Fordham and UMass have met 70 times previously with the Minutemen having the slightest of edges at 35-34-1. The two teams met at Houlihan Park last season with the Rams coming away with the series win, getting victories in game two and three. In that series,
Chris Genaro and
Tommy McAndrews combined for six runs scored and four RBI for the Rams.
OPPONENT OUTLOOK: The Minutemen are 10-18 on the season with a 2-4 mark in the Atlantic 10. UMass is batting .258 as a team and averaging 5.5 runs per contest. Mike Gervasi remains one of the top bats, leading the team with eight home runs to go with 19 RBI, while Carter Hanson has a team-best 20 RBI. Matt Travisano is having a strong season as well, posting a .346 batting average with 20 runs scored and 13 RBI. On the mound, the Minutemen have a 6.55 ERA and a .297 opponent batting average. Sam Belliveau and Robbie O'Connor have been mainstays in the weekend rotation, combining for three wins and 39 strikeouts.
LAST TIME OUT (4/10): Columbia's Jack Cooper went 2-for-3 with a home run and five RBI to lead the Lions to a 14-2 win over the Fordham Rams at Robertson Field in New York.
With the game scoreless in the third inning, Columbia opened the scoring with three runs, highlighted by a solo home run by Cole Hage, his eighth of the season. The Lions then tacked on five runs in the fourth and three in the fifth for an 11-0 advantage. The biggest hit of those rallies was a three-run home run by Jack Cooper, his 11
th of the season.
Fordham broke through with two runs in the seventh inning, picking up an RBI-double by
Ryan Thiesse and an RBI-single from
Cian Sahler for an 11-2 score.
Columbia closed out the scoring with an RBI-double in the seventh by Cooper and a two-run double from Dean Reynolds for the 14-2 final. For Fordham,
Daniel Bucciero was 3-for-4 with a double and a run scored with Sahler going 1-for-2 with a pair of walks.
PROMISING START: The opening two weekends of conference play have been good for the Rams, hitting .321 as a team and averaging 7.0 runs per game. The Rams have a trio of hitters over the .400 mark, starting with
Ryan Thiesse at .462 with seven runs scored and two RBI, while
Cian Sahler is at .458 with five RBI.
Daniel Bucciero has brought the thunder in league action, hitting .407 with three doubles, three home runs, and nine RBI.
Chris Genaro is also hovering near the .400 mark at .389 with six runs scored and four RBI. The pitching has also been good, recording a 4.89 ERA, led by
Declan Lavelle, who is 2-0 with a 2.45 ERA and 14 strikeouts in two starts.
LIGHTIN' IT UP: Cian Sahler has matched his career-long with an eight-game hit streak, batting .448 over that stretch with six RBI…
Daniel Bucciero is on a seven-game hit streak, batting .452 in those games with seven extra-base hits and nine RBI… In his last four starts,
Declan Lavelle is 3-1 with a 3.51 ERA in 25.2 innings with 24 strikeouts…
Ryan Thiesse is batting .433 in his last seven contests with seven runs scored and three stolen bases.
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: After this weekend, Fordham is back home for their next game to start a five-game homestand. The Rams will face Sacred Heart on Tuesday, April 16
th, before hosting Saint Louis for a three-game series, April 19-21.
