HOBOKEN, N.J. (April 19, 2024) – Junior Eli Somers tallied two hits, an RBI, and scored twice, while junior Zachary Boykin recorded two hits, two RBI, and a run scored, as the Stevens Institute of Technology baseball team beat FDU-Florham 7-2 Friday afternoon in a MAC Freedom contest.

Sophomore Erik Sibbach (8-2) earned the win for the Ducks. He pitched six and two-thirds innings and gave up two runs on five hits. He also struck out seven batters. Senior Marc Rivera (1) earned his first career save. He pitched the final two and one third inning and allowed only one hit. He struck out one batter.

With the win, Stevens earned their 20th win of the season, as they now have a record of 20-10 and an 11-5 record in conference play. Stevens has won four-straight games overall and three-straight in MAC Freedom play. The Ducks remain in third place in the conference standings heading into tomorrow's matchup. The Ducks can clinch a spot in the MAC Freedom tournament with a sweep of FDU-Florham tomorrow and one loss from either DeSales or Lebanon Valley. They can also clinch by winning just one game tomorrow if DeSales or Lebanon Valley loses twice tomorrow.

The Ducks improved to 15-6 all-time against FDU-Florham and are on a 12-game winning streak against the Devils. FDU-Florham fell to 10-22 with the loss and they are now 3-13 in MAC Freedom play.

The Rundown

• Stevens did almost all of their damage in the first inning as they batted through the order. Graduate student Ben Tobio and Somers hit back-to-back doubles to start the game as the Ducks quickly went up 1-0. The Ducks would then load the bases as senior Christian Kreiser walked and graduate student Michael Reyes hit a single. The Ducks would score their second run of the game as Boykin singled. In the next at-bat, first-year Tyler Wilke grounded out, but he brought home Kreiser to put the Ducks up 3-0. After senior Frank Tonina was hit by a pitch to load the bases, first-year Chip Krese delivered a two-RBI double as the Ducks went up by five. Tobio would later reach first on a fielder's choice in his second at-bat of the inning, bringing home another run in the process, as the Ducks led 6-0 after one.
• The Ducks had a runner in scoring position in the second but were unable to convert.
• FDU-Florham got two back in the top of the seventh as the Ducks lead was trimmed to four.
• After giving up two in the top half of the inning, Stevens got a run back in the seventh. Somers singled to start the inning, and would later move to second after Reyes grounded out. Boykin then hit a hard single to left as the outfielder couldn't make the diving play, allowing Somers to score.

Top Performers

• Tobio had two hits, one RBI, and scored once.
• Krese had two RBI and one hit.
• Kreiser was walked three times.
• Kreiser and Boykin each stole a base.
• Sibbach threw 102 pitches.

For the Opponents

• Robbie Hughes (0-5) took the loss. He pitched just one inning and gave up six runs on five hits. Alex DiSimone calmed the Devils down out of the pen, as he pitched five innings and only gave up one hit while striking out four batters.
• Aaron Santos had two RBI and one hit.
• Jack Giovenco led the game in hits with three.
• The Devils had just one extra base hit.

Around the MAC Freedom 

• Lebanon Valley 0, Penn State Harrisburg 20 F/WED
• DeSales 2, Misericordia 7
• Lebanon Valley 5, Delaware Valley 7
• King's 5, Arcadia 9

Up Next

• Baseball heads to Madison, N.J. to finish the series with FDU-Florham as the two teams will play a doubleheader tomorrow. The games are set for 12 p.m. and 2:30 p.m. The Ducks are 15-6 all-time against the Devils, including winning the last 11 meetings. Links for live stats and video are available on stevensducks.com.