HOBOKEN, N.J. (February 11, 2024) – Senior Christian Kreiser hit a home run in game one, while junior Eli Somers had two hits, two runs scored, and an RBI in game two, as the Stevens Institute of Technology baseball team beat The City College of New York (CCNY) 6-0 in game one and 10-1 in game two Saturday in a doubleheader at Dobbelaar Field.

Stevens surrendered just seven hits to the Beavers across the two matches. Sophomore Erik Sibbach (1-0) and senior Jacob Buurman (1-0) each picked up their first victories of the season. Sibbach and sophomore William Sotiropoulos, the two starters for the Ducks, combined to throw 12 strikeouts.

The Ducks open up the season 2-0 for the fourth straight year. The Ducks have also swept CCNY on opening day for the second straight year.

With the two victories, Stevens improves to 13-1 all-time against CCNY. The Ducks have won seven straight contests against the Beavers, dating back to the 2014 season.

The Rundown (Game 1)

• Picking up in the fourth inning with the game tied at zero, CCNY made a pitching change, inserting Richard Vento (0-1) to replace the starter Brandon Paider. Vento faced Kreiser as his first batter. The first pitch he threw to Kreiser left the park, as the senior got the Ducks on the board with a 1-0 lead. The Ducks then picked up three base runners due to walks, and scored another run off the bat of first-year Chip Krese, the first RBI of his young career, to put the home side up 2-0.
• The Ducks added three more runs in the fifth. With the first two batters out, Kreiser picked up another hit, as he singled to center. Senior Frank Tonina then reached on an error, which put Kreiser on third. Senior Jack Irby was up next, and he delivered a single down the right side to advance both runners, with Kreiser scoring on the play. Graduate student Michael Reyes would reach on an error in the next Duck at bat, which allowed Tonina to score and give Stevens a 5-0 lead.
• The Ducks added another run in the sixth as junior Colby Ching crossed home plate. He walked to lead off the inning, and would advance to second on a wild pitch. Sophomore Dylan Fishbough would bring Ching home a few batters later as he doubled down the left field side.
• Sibbach allowed just two hits in the game and threw four strikeouts in the first two innings.

The Rundown (Game 2)

• Neither team was able to score for the first three innings again in game two, but the Ducks once again broke things open in the fourth. Somers singled to open the inning and then after two-straight outs, sophomore Liam Houghton doubled to bring home Somers. He would advance to third on a passed ball, and was brought home by a single from senior Jack Stafford. With the bases later loaded, Fishbough earned an RBI as he was hit by a pitch. The Ducks were up 3-0 after four.
• Both teams tacked on one run in the fifth. It would be the lone run of the day for the Beavers. Similarly to the fourth, the Ducks once again recorded a bases loaded walk, this time drawn by junior Liam DeRubertis.
• Sotiropoulos allowed the run in the fourth. He pitched 4.1 innings and gave up two hits, but also walked four batters.
• Stevens clinched the game in the sixth inning as they put six runs past the Beavers. Fishbough walked and stole second to kick things off for the Ducks. Graduate student Ben Tobio then singled and advanced to second on a throwing error, which allowed Fishbough to reach home. Somers singled in the next at bat to bring Tobio home. Later with the bases loaded, DeRubertis drove a ball to right center which cleared the bases and gave Stevens a 9-1 advantage. DeRubertis then stole third and reached home plate on an error.

Top Performers

• Kreiser tallied three runs, three hits, and one RBI on the day.
• DeRubertis had a team-leading four RBI across the two games.
• The Ducks tallied 19 hits and zero errors.
• Senior Axel Johnson tallied two strikeouts in an inning of relief for the Ducks in game two.
• Sibbach walked zero batters in six innings of work in game one.
• Somers and Fishbough each stole two bases.

For the Opponents

• Ismael Jimenez took the loss in game two, as he allowed seven hits and three runs in four innings of work.
• Eric Rank recorded the lone RBI for CCNY.
• Kevin Budzinski scored one run.
• The Beavers used 11 pitchers.

Around the MAC Freedom 

• No other teams in action

Up Next

• Baseball returns to the field next weekend for a three-game set with William Patterson. The first game will be on Saturday in Wayne N.J. at 12 p.m., and then the two teams will meet twice on Sunday at 11 a.m and 1:30 p.m. in Hoboken. Links for live stats and video are posted to StevensDucks.com.