University of Richmond Athletics
University of Richmond
Fordham
Errors Costly As Richmond Falls To Fordham, 3-1, In A-10 Championship
05/24/2007 | Baseball
May 24, 2007
DAYTON, Ohio - Richmond pounded out 10 hits but fell to Fordham, 3-1, on day two of the Atlantic 10 Baseball Championship at Fifth Third Field in downtown Dayton, Ohio. The third-seeded Spiders slip to the losers' bracket and will face fourth-seeded Xavier tomorrow in an elimination game at 3:30 p.m.
Senior Matt McKenna was three-for-four and continues his torrid late-season streak. The senior from Benedictine High School in Richmond, who had a hit in yesterday's win over St. Bonaventure, is batting .609 over his last seven games (14-for-23) with six extra-base hits and six RBIs.
But Richmond (31-27), the A-10's best fielding team, committed three early errors leading to a pair of unearned runs that would prove to be the difference in the game. Regardless, the game was a classic pitchers' dual between Richmond's Matt Zielinski and Fordham's Cory Riordan. Each went 7.0 innings, with Riordan taking the win and Zielinski the loss.
On the flip side, a pair of clutch defensive plays by the Rams (34-20) preserved the victory. Second-seeded Fordham advances to the semifinals of the winners' bracket and will play top-seeded Charlotte tomorrow at noon for the right to play in Saturday's championship game.
With the Rams leading 3-1 in the eighth, Riordan was chased after Joe White singled home Joe Mahoney for the Spiders' first run of the game. A McKenna single off reliever Peter Kennelly, put two on with one out in the inning. Cameron Brown then dunked a single into shallow center field. White attempted to score from second but was gunned down at the plate with an 8-3-2 put out.
In the fourth inning, Vince Riggi led off with a walk. White grounded into a crisply-turned 6-4-3 double play that proved costly as McKenna roped a double in the next at bat that would have scored a run.
Riordan (7-4) fanned six in his 7.1 innings of work with eight hits, one walk and one earned run. A-10 Rookie of the Year Zielinski (6-5) was on the short end in 7.0 innings and got little run support from a team that scored eight times yesterday. He allowed three runs (one earned), with four strikeouts, one walk and eight hits.
Although out-hitting the Rams 10-8, the Spiders left 12 runners stranded on base, including two in the ninth when they threatened again.
Pinch-hitter Chris Vargo drew a lead off walk in the top of the ninth. With one out, Alex Wotring walked to put two on and bring Mahoney to the plate as the go-ahead run. James Sammut came on in relief for his sixth save of the season and got Mahoney and Riggi to each fly out and end the game.
Fordham scored first in the bottom of the first inning with a sacrifice fly from Jordan Lert that scored Eric Reese, who reached on an error. Another sac fly in the second from Danny Leach plated Brian Keeney for the second run. P.J. Como, who reached on an error in the fourth, scored from second on Eric Reese's RBI single.
Fordham has taken three of the four games between the two teams this season. The Spiders now face an up-hill climb, needing four straight wins in two days to win the title.
