Bronx, N.Y. – (April 9, 2024) – Following its home series win over Richmond this past weekend, the Fordham baseball team is on the road for all four games this week, beginning with a mid-week tilt at longtime local rival Columbia on Wednesday afternoon.
Fordham (11-19) enters Wednesday after winning two of three league games over Richmond at Houlihan Park to even its league record at 3-3. Columbia (13-12) comes into the game on an eight-game win streak, following a three-game sweep of Dartmouth.
SERIES HISTORY: Fordham and Columbia have been playing each other in baseball over 140 years, dating back to 1884 and stands as one of the longer rivalries in college baseball. Wednesday is the 132
nd all-time meeting with the Rams holding a 72-57-2 series edge. The Lions however have gotten the better of the Rams as of late, taking four of the last five meetings since 2017, which included a 16-9 win at Houlihan Park last year. Fordham's last win over Columbia was a 3-2 11-inning affair in 2019.
OPPONENT OUTLOOK: Columbia has been rolling lately, winning their last eight games overall and holding an 8-1 record in Ivy League play. The team is batting .282 and already have 45 home runs this season in just 25 games. Jack Cooper leads the power surge with 10 home runs and 34 RBI to go with a .337 batting average. Cole Hage has seven home runs and 21 RBI for the Lions with a team-best .341 batting average. On the mound, Columbia boasts an 8.92 ERA and .299 opponent batting average, as ten different pitchers have started at least one game this season.
RAMS RACK RICHMOND: Fordham picked up a big series win against the Richmond Spiders over the weekend. On Friday,
Declan Lavelle and
Aric Berg were masterful for the Rams in a 5-2 win. Lavelle threw a career-best 7.2 innings with a career-high 10 strikeouts, while Berg recorded the final four outs for his first career save. Then the bats broke lose on Saturday in a 12-2 victory, racking up 12 hits.
Ryan Thiesse was 3-for-4 with three runs scored to lead the Fordham attack. The Rams had a chance for a sweep on Sunday, leading 2-1 after a two-run home run by
Daniel Bucciero in the seventh inning. However Richmond scored twice in the eighth and three times in the ninth to escape with a 6-2 victory.
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 is on a seven-game hit streak, batting .444 over that stretch with five RBI…
Ryan Thiesse is on a six-game hit streak, batting .462 over those games with seven runs scored, three stolen bases, and two RBI…
Daniel Bucciero has six extra-base hits and nine RBI in his last six games… In his last four starts,
Declan Lavelle is 3-1 with a 3.51 ERA in 25.2 innings with 24 strikeouts.
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/Ramses Challenge.
WHO'S NEXT: Fordham remains on the road this week, traveling to Massachusetts for a three-game league series, April 12-14.
