BEAVER FALLS, Pa. – The Geneva College women's basketball team finished its semester with a game against The College of Wooster on Monday evening, and despite building a double-digit halftime lead, the Golden Tornadoes were unable to hold on in the end, losing 56-55 in the closing seconds.  Wooster improved to 4-5, while Geneva fell to 2-7.

Geneva got off to a great start, jumping out to a 12-2 lead as junior Jeana Luciana (Oakmont, Pa./Saint Joseph) and sophomore Lauren Tipton (Glenside, Pa./Phil-Mont Christian Academy) each scored four early points.  Wooster struggled shooting the ball, and Geneva took advantage with a 16-8 lead at the end of the first quarter.

Sophomore Alexis Gates (New Waterford, Ohio/Crestview) hit two 3-pointers early in the second quarter to push Geneva's lead to 22-10.  After Wooster closed to within eight, Geneva scored seven straight points to give the Golden Tornadoes their biggest lead of the game, 29-14.  At that point Wooster, after missing its first 14 3-pointers, finally broke through from deep with back-to-back 3-pointers to cut the lead to 32-20 at halftime.  Gates led the offense with eight points.

The third quarter proved to be the difference in the game.  Wooster came out energized, and within four minutes the Fighting Scots had cut the deficit down to 37-33 in a run that included three 3-pointers.  Geneva responded with four quick points, but Wooster went on a 13-4 run to close the quarter and take its first lead of the game, 46-45.  Wooster outscored Geneva by 13 points in the quarter.

Wooster added the first bucket of the fourth quarter to go up 48-45, its biggest lead of the game.  However, Geneva answered with seven straight points, the last a spinning layup from Tipton to go back up 52-48.  From there game was tight down to the final whistle.  Geneva held the lead until the final minute when Wooster caught a break.  A deflected loose ball bounced to Sarah Rapacz under the hoop, who converted the open layup to put Wooster back up, 56-55, which would ultimately prove to be the game-winner.  Geneva had two possessions to find a game-winner, but a missed layup and a turnover with one second remaining sealed the win for Wooster in heartbreaking fashion for the Golden Tornadoes.

"I'm so proud of our kids," Head Coach Lori Wynn said after the game.  "We bounced back really well after Saturday's loss.  We didn't get the end result that we wanted, but we got better.  We took better care of the ball, and we got the shots we wanted.  We just need to finish better."

Senior Callie Ford (New Middleton, Ohio/Springfield Local) led the team with 20 points, 11 rebounds and five assists.  Foul trouble proved costly for Geneva, as Gates, who eventually fouled out, and Tipton, who finished with four fouls, both missed significant stretches in the second half due to foul trouble.  Geneva managed just eight trips to the foul line, while Wooster took advantage with 24 trips to the stripe in what was a key difference in the game, as Geneva outshot and outrebounded Wooster.  Maria Janasko led Wooster with 12 points.

Geneva will take a few days off for Christmas break before returning to the court with a rematch against Houghton on Saturday, December 29, at 2:00 p.m.  Geneva defeated Houghton in the first matchup this season between the two schools.


Geneva College is a Christ-centered academic community that provides a comprehensive education to equip students for faithful and fruitful service to God and neighbor. Offering over 80 traditional undergraduate majors and programs, fully online Adult Degree Programs, and high-demand graduate degrees, Geneva's programs are recognized for their high quality. U.S. News & World Report ranks Geneva as a Top Three Best Value Regional University with one of the Top 100 engineering programs in the nation. Adhering to the truth of Scripture, a Geneva education is grounded in God's Word as well as in a core curriculum designed to prepare students vocationally to think, write and communicate well in today's world.