BEAVER FALLS, Pa. – The Geneva College women's basketball team hosted Houghton on Saturday afternoon in a rare non-conference rematch after the Golden Tornadoes defeated the Highlanders just three weeks ago in Metheny Fieldhouse, and this game went much differently for both teams.  After a tight first quarter, Houghton eventually ran away with the game, winning 80-54.  Houghton improved to 7-2, while Geneva fell to 2-8.

Geneva kept with Houghton early, taking an early 8-6 lead on a bucket from sophomore Lauren Tipton (Glenside, Pa./Phil-Mont Christian Academy).  Geneva held that lead until Brittany Lenart hit a 3-pointer right before the buzzer to give Houghton a 12-10 lead, a lead the Highlanders would eventually never relinquish.

Houghton started the second quarter on a 9-2 run to take a 21-12 lead.  Geneva would close to within 23-18 on another layup from Tipton, but Houghton scored the last nine points of the quarter to take a commanding 32-18 lead into the halftime break.

Things did not get any better for the Golden Tornadoes in the second half.  Houghton stretched its lead to 46-26 midway through the third quarter, and Geneva never got closer than 16 points the rest of the game, as the Highlanders continued to shoot well from the perimeter in finishing off the game, 80-54.

"Houghton is a good team, and they played hard," Head Coach Lori Wynn said afterwards.  "We have to get better on the defensive end of the floor, though."

Senior Callie Ford (New Middleton, Ohio/Springfield Local) led the offense with 17 points.  Sophomore Alexis Gates (New Waterford, Ohio/Crestview) also finished in double figures with 10 points, while Tipton added nine points and nine rebounds.  Geneva shot just 26% from the floor.  Houghton finished an even 50% from the floor, including 10-of-16 shooting from 3-point range.  Lenart led Houghton with 23 points, including 5-of-8 shooting from deep.

Geneva returns to Presidents' Athletic Conference action next Thursday, January 3, when it hosts Grove City at 5:30 p.m.


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.