BRONX, N.Y. – Wrapping a seven-game homestand with a three-game Atlantic 10 series, Fordham University Softball hosts George Mason this weekend at Bahoshy Field.
With inclement weather expected Sunday, the series was moved up a day, and will be played as a Friday doubleheader beginning at 2:00 p.m. with a single game Saturday afternoon, currently slated for an 11:00 a.m. first pitch. Mister Softee will also be available from 2:00-4:00 p.m. during Friday's games.
Stack 'Em Up
Fordham (17-16, 7-2 A-10) are riding a six-game win streak entering the weekend that includes four victories over A-10 opponents. Most recently the Rams defeated Stony Brook 7-4 Wednesday, and have outscored their opponents 53-10 over the course of the win streak.
Overall this season, Fordham's offense ranks amongst the A-10 leaders, ranked second in hits (251), batting average (.293), home runs (20), and on-base percentage (.381), while sitting third in doubles (37). The Rams' 42 stolen bases as a team place them third best in the A-10, 87th best of all Division I teams.
Since the first game of March, back on the fifth at Iona, the Rams have tallied nine games with nine or more hits including five games with 11 or more in that span. Over the entirety of the campaign, the Rams have posted 12 games with at least nine hits, and have posted a season-high 12 on five separate occasions, most recently over St. Bonaventure in both games Saturday afternoon.
On the defensive end the Rams have turned 10 double-plays this year, second most of any team in the league, and sit 55th in the nation with a .970 fielding percentage as a team. The Fordham pitching staff sits second in the A-10 in shutouts and has the second-best strikeout-to-walk ratio in the conference at 1.7.
Leading the Lineup
On the season, Nogay leads the Rams and all players in the A-10, ranked 76th in the country with 45 hits and her 29 stolen bases place her sixth best of any player in the nation. Nogay is batting .381 on the year, driving in 14 RBIs and scoring 31 runs.
Eva Koratsis is hitting .316 with 30 hits, driving 21 RBIs with 15 runs scored, tied for second on the team in runs batted in, behind Sydney Wells who's brought in 29 RBIs as the defending A-10 Player of the Week, hitting .333 on the year with a 1.155 OPS with 29 hits and 16 runs scored, leading the team with seven home runs, including four in her last five games.
Nicki Sudall is tied for second in RBIs as well, driving in 21 RBIs this season, while scoring 12 runs and scattering 29 hits, one of five Rams with 25 or more base-knocks. Sudall also sits second on the team after she cranked her fifth home run of the season last weekend.
Center Circle
Holly Beeman holds an 8-3 record, and has tallied the best ERA in the A-10 at 2.04, ranked 61st in the nation, while tossing the fifth most innings of any pitcher in the conference with 75.1 on the year. She also sits 29th in the nation in shutouts, and 67th nationally with just 1.58 walks allowed per seven innings, third best in the A-10.
Tossing 10 complete games in 12 appearances, Beeman sits 26th in the nation in complete games, and has claimed a pair of A-10 Pitcher of the Week awards thus far in the second and third week of the year.
Emilee Watkins has tallied five wins on the season, posting 47.2 innings pitched, striking out 20 batters over that span, while Olivia Simcoe nabbed wins in the last two midweek outings, tossing a full seven innings in each while allowing just five runs and striking out eight batters over that span.
Swerve, Bend That Corner, Woah-oh
Locking down the leadoff spot over the past two seasons, Nogay is always a threat to steal, already surpassing her career best mark from a season ago, when she stole 22 bases in 24 tries, now sitting with 29 this season on 32 attempts.
Nogay's 29 stolen bases now places her tied for second all-time for stolen bases in a single season at Fordham, with the program record being 36, set by Jessica Hughes '17 in 2016. In her third season in Maroon and White, Nogay has stolen seven bases over the last five games, moving to 66 steals in her career, tied with Lindsey Kay Bright '12 for fourth all-time in Fordham history, and ties Bright's single-season mark from 2009 with 29 stolen bases this season.
In a doubleheader against Loyola-Chicago on Mar. 15, Nogay stole five bases in six attempts, tying a program record with four steals in four tries in game two Saturday against Loyola Chicago. Brianna Pinto '22 was the only player to do so, just a handful of years ago, stealing four bases at Stony Brook on Apr. 8, 2021. Pinto also holds the all-time stolen base record at Fordham with 85.
Surging Past Stony Brook
Scoring a pair of runs in their first turn at the plate, the Rams pushed across four more in the second to take a commanding 6-0 lead early on Wednesday against Stony Brook. Adding a run back in the third, Fordham made it 7-1 in the fourth inning, before a brief seventh inning rally saw the Seawolves score three to extend the game momentarily before being shut down from there.
Olivia Simcoe collected her third win of the season, tossing the full 7.0 innings Wednesday with four strikeouts. On the offensive side, Nicki Sudall led the way with three hits and three RBIs on the day, ahead of Kate McGuire with two hits and two RBIs, while Sydney Wells scored a pair while cranking her team-leading seventh home run of the season. Five different Rams came around to score, with Wells and Nogay each scoring twice.
No Torpedos Necessary
While Torpedo bats the story of the weekend for the Yankees and throughout the MLB, it may have been something in The Bronx air, as Fordham Softball rattled off 36 runs over three games against St. Bonaventure, the same output as the other Bronx Bombers down Grand Concourse.
Sweeping a doubleheader Saturday the Rams posted a 15-0 shutout victory in the series opener before claiming a 12-3 win in game two. Fordham then took a 9-1 victory Sunday, moving to 7-2 in league play now a third of the way through league action.
The Bats came alive for the Rams throughout the month of March, scoring 121 runs on 158 hits over 18 games from Mar. 5-30.
Series History
Fordham has owned the all-time series against George Mason, entering the weekend with a 22-8 record against the Patriots, though GMU has taken four of the last seven meetings between the two sides. Fordham took the final two games in a three-game set last season, and outscored the Patriots 13-4 over the course of that series.
Non-Conference Offerings
Facing six opponents that reached an NCAA Regional last season, the 2025 calendar sees Fordham play 51 games against teams from 14 different conferences including the A-10, with 19 tournament games against 10 different opponents on the non-conference side of the schedule.
Fordham will also play five additional midweek non-league games throughout March and April, mixed into a nine-team, 26-game Atlantic 10 slate. The Rams previously took on Hofstra, Clemson, and Stony Brook at home earlier this year, and St. John's on the road last week, and will host one more midweek non-league vs. LIU on Apr. 16. The Rams will head to Saint Joseph's for the lone midweek conference series of the campaign with a doubleheader next Wednesday, Apr. 9.
Within Friendly Confines
Fordham opened a seven-game homestand last weekend, the longest of the campaign, hosting a three game set against St. Bonaventure, before a single game against Stony Brook on Wednesday, Apr. 2. The Rams remain at home this weekend as well, hosting their second straight A-10 series when George Mason comes to town Apr. 4-5 for three games Friday and Saturday.
The 2025 season will see a fresh look throughout the Bahoshy Softball Complex, with new turf installed in the outfield and surrounding the perimeter of the field, replacing the old dirt warning track and foul areas, providing faster drainage during inclement weather and allowing the Rams to return to the field much faster than before.
New Maroon padding will surround the outfield wall, including the high-fence in left field, with the batters facing directly towards the New York City skyline imprinted in each of the gaps.
"Fordham Softball" is featured prominently in all caps in straightaway center, with the left and right field walls showcasing the Rams past Atlantic 10 and NCAA tournament bids over the team's 41 year history, and a spot for future All-Americans to leave their name and legacy.
Both the Rams' batting cages and home and visiting bullpens also feature new turf throughout, with the visiting bullpen being moved much closer to the visiting dugout on the first base side.
Scouting George Mason
At 15-21 on the year, the Patriots sit at 7-4 in league play, splitting a midweek series with league leading George Washington, taking the opener 3-2 in eight innings before falling 8-1 in the second game. Batting .307 with a 1.091 OPS, Tess Altevers Harris leads the Patriots with a .693 slugging percentage as well, driving in 23 RBIs on 23 hits.
What's Next?
After their longest homestand of the campaign, the Rams will play eight of their next nine games on the road, beginning with the lone A-10 midweek matchup of the season, as Fordham heads down I-95 to Philadelphia for a doubleheader at Saint Joseph's Wednesday at 2:00 p.m.
