WEEHAWKEN, N.J. (April 10, 2021) – For the third consecutive start in the circle, Stevens Institute of Technology student-athlete Jessie Masur twirled a one-hit shutout while striking out a career-high 14 in the opening game of a doubleheader to help the Ducks earn a doubleheader sweep of Fairleigh Dickinson University-Florham Campus at Weehawken Waterfront Park Saturday, winning game one 3-0 and game two 6-3.

Stevens moves to 10-2 in the MAC Freedom with the two wins and into sole possession of second place in the conference, just percentage points behind Misericordia University (14-2).

"It was a beautiful day for softball, to say the least," head coach Emily Kaczmarek said. "It always feels nice to get two wins. We're continuing to build one day at a time."

The building for the Ducks started in game one with a solid effort on the mound by Masur and at the plate by senior Siobhan Cottell, who drove in all three runs in the game.

In the opening contest, Masur (8-1) found herself in the only trouble she would be in all day in the third. With the score still tied at 0-0, the Devils were able to load the bases on a walk, a single and an error with two outs.

The senior did not blink, however, as she got FDU-Florham's cleanup hitter Morgan DeLoreto to strikeout looking to end the frame.

Stevens got on the board first in the bottom of the fourth when Amanda Delorme singled up the middle with two away to bring Cottell to the plate. After falling behind in the count 1-2, Cottell was able to rip a fastball down the left field line to score Delorme who was hustling hard around the bases.

The Ducks added insurance runs two innings later. After Abigail Circelli led the inning off with a single, Victoria Kapp came on to pinch run and eventually ended up on third base thanks to a sac bunt by Jessica Guerrero and a groundout from Delorme.

Cottell came to the plate and delivered a big two-out hit once again, this time lifting the first pitch she saw to the left field fence. The Devils' left fielder Hunter Ruppel nearly made an amazing play at the wall but could not hold on as the ball fell out of her glove and over the fence for a two-run bomb.

Cottell finished the contest 2 for 3 with two RBIs and a run scored. She now has three homers on the year and two in her last three games.

That would be more than enough for Masur who faced just one batter over the minimum over the final four innings and struck out six of the last nine batters she faced.

Masur has now lowered her season earned-run average to 1.00 and has not allowed an earned run in her last 31 1/3 innings in the circle. Currently, she is averaging 9.25 strikeouts per nine innings which would shatter the single-season record of 8.44 set by Marissa Cappello in 2018.

The Devils responded in a big way to start game two, using the left field line to their advantage. The leadoff hitter in the first ripped a double down the left field line on the first pitch she saw, stole third and was brought home on an RBI single down the same chalk line.

Starting pitcher Erin Kreis settled in from there, however, as she got back-to-back strikeouts and looked like she would be out of the inning allowing just the one run after she induced a ground ball to third. Guerrero was unable to hold onto the throw at first, however, and an unearned run came around to score.

Guerrero made up for the error in the field in the second, though, as she led the inning off with a double into the right center field gap.

Delorme then followed it up and put two runners in scoring position when she singled to right and advanced to second on the throw.

With one out, Melanie Blarr was able to hit an RBI groundout to the shortstop to bring home Guerrero and cut the deficit in half.

One inning later, the Ducks took the lead for good. After Samantha Schattin walked to lead off the inning, Alex Schoellig singled to the pitcher and the duo advanced to second and third on a groundout to third by Meg Halloran.

After Madison Gemma was hit by a pitch to load the bases, Guerrero hit a ground ball to third base that resulted in a force out at the plate but was able to beat out the return throw to first to keep the inning alive with two outs.

That proved to be big as Delorme came to bat and promptly ripped a 2-0 pitch down the right field line for a double to score Gemma and Schoellig and give Stevens a 3-2 lead.

The score remained the same until the bottom of the fifth when the Ducks tacked on a run on an RBI single off the bat of Guerrero that scored Halloran.

Stevens added two more insurance runs in the sixth thanks to a leadoff single from Gina DeOliveira, a throwing error by the FDU-Florham third baseman and an RBI single by Schattin to make it 6-2.

The Devils rallied a bit in the seventh with an unearned run on an RBI single of their own, but Kreis slammed the door one batter later as she got her sixth strikeout of the game to end the threat and the game.

Kreis (3-4) was effective in the circle after the shaky start, earning the win after tossing seven innings, allowing just one earned run, scattering eight hits and fanning six. She has now earned a win in each of her last two starts and has given up just one earned run in her last 12 innings.

At the plate, Schattin, Guerrero and Delorme all had multi-hit games, and all had a double in the win. Guerrero and Schattin both drove in a single run while Delorme brought in two.

The Ducks have now swept four doubleheaders on the year and have won eight of their last nine after a 4-4 start.

With poor weather in the forecast for Sunday, the second doubleheader at Florham has been postponed to a later date.

The Ducks will return to action Wednesday in Center Valley, Pa., when they take on DeSales University to complete the second half of that series. Live stats and video will be available on StevensDucks.com.

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