HOBOKEN, N.J. (February 10, 2024) - First-year Kay Decker dropped a career-high 21 points and grabbed a career-high 15 rebounds, while first-year Paige Gorczyca and sophomore Olivia Schubiger each had a career scoring day, as the Stevens Institute of Technology women's basketball team defeated King's 65-54 in a MAC Freedom contest Saturday afternoon inside Canavan Arena.

The Ducks (12-11, 7-5 MAC Freedom) get back into the win column and have won four of their last five. Stevens finishes 2-0 against King's this season. The Monarchs (3-20, 0-12 MAC Freedom) continue to struggle. Stevens moves back into the top four in the MAC Freedom standings, sitting in fourth with just two games to go. Stevens is currently tied with Lebanon Valley and Delaware Valley with a record of 7-5 in conference play, but they have the tiebreaker over Lebanon Valley and have the chance to gain a the tiebreaker with Delaware Valley Tuesday night. The top four teams qualify for the MAC Freedom Tournament.

The game started off slow as the two teams struggled to make field goals early. Schubiger made the game's first basket at the 7:31 mark, but King's led 6-2 at the halfway mark of the quarter. Schubiger scored eight of the ten Duck points in the first, with the other two coming from sophomore Isabella Duval. The game was tied at 10 at the end of the first. The Ducks would score the first five points in the second, as Gorczyca made a layup and sophomore Leyla Castro made a triple. Junior Lucy Alberici made the next two baskets for the Ducks, as 19-14 with 5:34 to go. King's responded with back-to-back threes to re-take the lead. Stevens trailed 24-20 with just over a minute to go, but they would go on a 7-0 run to close the half. Decker made a layup and two free throws, while Castro made an incredible three-quarter court buzzer beater, something she has done multiple times this season, to give the Ducks a 27-24 advantage at halftime.

King's scored the first four points of the third to counter the buzzer beater from Castro and to put the Monarchs in front. First-year Kay Decker then made a layup to put the Ducks back on top. Tied at 31, Schubiger made a tough shot to give the home side the lead again. King's would continue to have an answer for what Stevens was throwing at them, as the two teams would continue to be tied with 3:41 to go. The Ducks outscored the Monarchs 7-2 to end the quarter and take a 44-39 lead into the fourth. Decker made a buzzer-beating layup, the second buzzer beater of the game for the home side. After King's made the first basket of the fourth, the Ducks went on an 8-0 run to take a commanding nine-point lead. Gorczyca scored four of the eight for Stevens. Up nine with 5:28 to go, Gorczyca made a step-back three from the top of the arc to put the Ducks up double figures. The Monarchs would get back to within nine with under two minutes to go, but the lead was too big for Stevens, as they earned a crucial MAC Freedom win.

Top Performers

• Decker also had two assists, two blocks, and one steal.
• Schubiger also grabbed seven rebounds.
• Gorczyca also snagged five boards.
• Castro scored six points and dished out four assists.
• Stevens shot 37.7 percent (26-69) from the field and 30.0 percent (3-10) from three. The Ducks also shot 58.8 percent (10-17) from the line.

The Opponent

• Gianna Dickson scored 12 points and had three rebounds.
• Cadie Lewis scored six points, provided six assists, and had six rebounds.
• Lauren Casey scored 10 points and picked up five rebounds.
• King's shot 42.0 percent (21-50) from the field and 20.0 percent (4-20) from three. They also went 8-11 from the free throw line (72.7%).

Around the MAC Freedom

• DeSales 63, Lebanon Valley 47
• Arcadia 68, Delaware Valley 59
• FDU-Florham 69, Misericordia 59

Up Next: Women's basketball continues conference play at home on Tuesday as they host Delaware Valley. It will be the last home game of the season for Stevens. Tip-off is scheduled for 7 p.m. The two teams met earlier this season in Doylestown, with the Aggies winning 72-61. Paige Gorczyca scored 11 points and had 12 rebounds in the game Links for live stats and video are posted to stevensducks.com