WASHINGTON, Pa. – Despite never leading for the first 39 minutes of the game and looking out of hope multiple times, the Geneva men's basketball team pulled off a dramatic comeback victory at second place Washington & Jefferson on Wednesday night, 73-72.  The Golden Tornadoes used a 13-point run at the end of the game to pull out the improbable win.  Geneva improved to 8-10, 5-5 in the Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC), while W&J fell to 8-11, 6-4 in the PAC.

Geneva fell down early, 12-4, just five minutes into the game, putting the Golden Tornadoes into an immediate hole.  The Golden Tornadoes closed to within 14-11 on a jumper from senior Danny Torok (Grove City, Pa./Grove City), but W&J stretched its lead back out to 23-13, the Presidents' first double-digit lead of the game.  Geneva responded with a 12-2 run, though, and when Torok hit a 3-pointer, the game was tied 25-25 with four minutes remaining in the half.  W&J managed to take a 38-35 lead into the halftime break.

W&J looked to be taking back control of the midway through the second half, though.  With the game tied at 51-51, W&J went on a 15-4 run to take its biggest lead of the game, 66-55, with just six minutes remaining.  W&J still maintained a 69-60 lead with just over three minutes remaining when Geneva began its comeback.  Five different Golden Tornadoes scored as Geneva put together 13 straight points to take its first lead of the game, 73-69.  W&J's only points in the closing stretch came on a last-second 3-pointer after a free throw from junior Noah Damazo (Beaver Falls, Pa./Blackhawk) had clinched the victory, with Geneva picking up the dramatic comeback win, 73-72.

"This was such a gutsy win," said Head Coach Jeff Santarsiero.  "We were down and out multiple times in this game, and we just showed relentless heart and never gave up.  We kept fighting and fighting.  I'm so proud of our team.  We didn't shoot it great, but we just battled.  This is one of the best wins we've had in recent memory, and I couldn't be prouder of the way we finished."

Junior Ethan Moose (New Castle, Pa./Neshannock) led the team with 19 points and nine rebounds.  Senior Eric McGee (Tampa, Fl./Seffner Christian) added 13 points, while Damazo, senior David Oliver (Sewickley, Pa./Quaker Valley), and junior Nick Rusyn (Salem, Ohio/Salem) each added eight points.  W&J shot 53% from the floor, including 12-of-22 (55%) from 3-point range, yet Geneva found a way to win late.  Cameron Seemann led W&J with a game-high 22 points.

Geneva returns home for its final non-conference game of the season on Saturday against Thomas More University.  Tipoff is at 3:30 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.