VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. – On Saturday the Geneva College women's volleyball team finished up its participation in the Virginia Wesleyan Invitational, and the Golden Tornadoes found the competition a little tougher as they dropped both matches.  In the first match, Geneva lost to McMurry (TX) University 25-22, 25-15, 25-19.  In the second match, Geneva lost to Widener (PA) University, 25-14, 25-16, 25-16.  With the two losses Geneva's record now stands at 2-2 after the first weekend.

Against McMurry, Geneva had a chance in the first set, but McMurry finished on a 7-3 run to take the set.   In the second set, McMurry scored seven straight points with the set tied at 10-10 to take control of that set, and in the third McMurry used an early six point run to take control of the last set.  Freshman Elana Hoppel led the way with six kills, while sophomore Grace Holdeman added ten digs.

In the afternoon match, Widener proved to be too tough, jumping on the Golden Tornadoes early in each set and not allowing Geneva back into the match.  Senior Allyssa Kerr led the team with eight kills.  Sophomore Daphne Hunsinger had 19 assists, while Holdeman again led the team in digs, this time with 17.

"Today we played two very big, athletic programs, and although we lost, the experience will be invaluable when we open against Presidents' Athletic Conference opponents," said Head Coach Wendy Smith.  "We hope today's losses will be tomorrow's gain."

Geneva will return home and will open the home portion of its schedule on Wednesday, September 5, with a match against Chatham University at 7:00 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.