ANNAPOLIS, Md. – Taking an abbreviated spring break to the Big Apple, the Navy baseball team (5-9) will look to win its third-straight game with Wednesday afternoon's contest against Fordham (4-11) at Houlihan Park in the Bronx, N.Y.
 
First pitch between the Midshipmen and host Rams is set for 3 p.m., with Wednesday game being the first road contest of the month for the Mids and only their fourth of the season so far.
 
Stephens Named PL Rookie of the Week
Freshman southpaw Spencer Stephens was named the Patriot League Rookie of the Week on Monday … Posting seven strikeouts while allowing just two hits and no walks, Stephens pitched four scoreless innings over two relief appearances and picked up his first collegiate win … Through six appearances this season, including one start, Stephens has maintained a 4.15 ERA across 13 innings, notching 16 strikeouts and a save as well … Stephens is the second Navy player this season to earn Patriot League Rookie of the Week, joining Ty DePerno's honor two weeks ago.
 
Izquierdo and Murtha Heating Up
The heart of the Navy order, juniors Brock Murtha and Victor Izquierdo, have started to turn it on after a slow start through the season's first two weeks … Murtha has tallied a .370 batting average over the Mids' last eight games, accounting for seven runs and knocking in eight RBI while also swiping eight bases … For Izquierdo, he batted .427 in the four-game series with UMass, notching six hits with four RBI, including a pair of doubles.
 
Midweek Mids
The Mids went 5-4 in midweek contests last season under first-year head coach Chuck Ristano after going 2-8 in 2023, with Navy posting a 3-2 mark in midweek home games last year … Victor Izquierdo batted .444 in midweek games last season, racking up four doubles, eight runs and 10 RBI over those nine starts, while 12 walks helped him post a .625 on-base percentage in midweeks … Hitting .286 in midweeks, Andrew Manning totaled 11 runs, three doubles and nine RBI in those contests … Brock Murtha garnered a .281 batting average in midweeks last season, with his career midweek batting average standing at .354 with 13 runs and 11 RBI.
 
Navy Notables
The Mids' 15 strikeouts as a pitching staff in Sunday's series finale with UMass were the most by Navy in a nine-inning game since Feb. 29, 2020 … Evan Brown posted a .300 road batting average last season, driving in 11 and scoring eight runs in 14 away games … Andrew Manning has made his hits count on the road over his career, notching 18 RBI and 17 runs scored in 25 career road games, including hitting all four of his college home runs away from home … Ryan Bibb registered a 3.38 ERA over five road appearances last season, totaling 16 innings while striking out nine to 13 hits.
 
Navy in the NCAA Stat Rankings
Navy ranks 43rd in the nation with 2.14 steals per game, while the Mids' pitching staff is 57th-best nationally with 7.98 hits allowed per nine innings … Henry Mitchell is 16th in the country with 0.62 hit-by-pitches per game … On the base paths, Tyler Bouchard stands 30th nationally with 0.69 steals per game and Brock Murtha ranks 41st with 0.64 steals per game … Tyler Grenn's 0.90 WHIP leads the Patriot League and stands 75th in Division I.

Scouting Fordham
The Rams will play their fourth-straight game against a service academy on Wednesday, as Fordham claimed a three-game series with Army this past weekend … After taking the series opener at home over the Black Knights, 9-2, Fordham continued to hit the Army pitching on Saturday in West Point en route to a 12-2 win, but missed out on the sweep by dropping the Sunday finale in the Bronx, 8-2 … Anthony Grabau holds a team-best .348 average to pace a group of seven Fordham hitters who enter the week batting above .300 … Matt Dieguez has tallied a team-high 13 RBI and is hitting .286, while Taylor Kirk has scored 16 times this season to go with a .328 batting average … Chase Hanawalt has posted a 2.35 EAR over a team-leading six appearances on the mound, logging 7.2 innings and having a .233 average against … The Rams bring back Second Team All-Atlantic 10 selections Daniel Bucciero and Cian Sahler from their 2024 roster, with Bucciero ranked 42nd among third basemen in the D1Baseball.com's preseason rankings … Fordham was picked 11th in the 12-team A10 preseason coaches poll.
 
Series History
Navy trails Fordham in the all-time series, 14-16 … While the series dates back to 1912, the two teams have not faced each other since 1995 … The last time the Mids and Rams played, the teams split a four-game series in Annapolis, as Navy took the series finale by a 2-1 score over its then-league foe … The Mids' last trip to Fordham came in 1994, as Navy dropped a pair of contests to the Rams, 3-2 and 7-2 … Navy's last win at Fordham was an 11-1 victory to open up the 1993 Patriot league Tournament.
 
Up Next
Navy will open Patriot League play when it hosts rival Army for the three-game 2025 Star Series on Saturday and Sunday, with Saturday's doubleheader slated for a 1 p.m. start.