BEAVER FALLS, Pa. – Tuesday night proved to be a good night for the Geneva College women's volleyball team.  The Golden Tornadoes continued their roll with their sixth straight win, sweeping W&J (25-21, 25-17, 25-22).  In addition, Geneva received some help from Bethany in its attempt to earn the top seed in the Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) playoffs, beginning next week.  With the victory over the Presidents, Geneva improved to 20-7, 11-3 in the PAC, while W&J fell to 4-21, 3-11 in the PAC.

The Golden Tornadoes jumped out to an early 10-6 lead in the first set, with junior Daphne Hunsinger (Harleysville, Pa./Christopher Dock) and sophomore Elana Hoppel (Castorland, N.Y./Lowville Academy and Central) each picking up two early kills.  However, W&J responded with a 7-1 run to take a 13-11 lead.  Geneva tied the score at 16-16, but the Presidents scored four straight points to appear to take control of the set, 20-16.  W&J still led 21-18 when the Golden Tornadoes finished the set with a flurry.  Geneva scored the last seven points of the set behind the serving of Hunsinger, with senior Millicent Dofelmier (Mill Creek, Wash./Jackson) picking up two kills, to win the set 25-21.  Senior Grace McCracken (Bloomington, Ind./Lighthouse Christian Academy) had a tremendous one-handed diving dig to keep the rally going at 21-21.

The Presidents scored four points early in the second set to take its first lead at 8-7.  However, Geneva responded with eight straight points of its own, again behind the service of Hunsinger, to take control of the set, 15-8.  Hunsinger also contributed two more kills in the run.  The Golden Tornadoes would build their lead to 23-12 before finishing off the set, 25-17, on a kill by senior Kacey Costal (Salem, Ohio/Salem).

The third set stayed close early, but with the score tied 6-6, Geneva scored six straight points behind the service of freshman Hope Shook (Bellwood, Pa./Bellwood-Antis), who picked up two aces in the stretch.  However, the Presidents wouldn't go away, and after W&J put together a 9-2 run, the Presidents had regained the lead, 18-16.  The Golden Tornadoes answered right back, though, retaking the lead 21-20 on back-to-back kills from Hunsinger and Costal.  After W&J tied the score with a point, Geneva closed with a 4-1 run, finishing the match off on another kill by Hunsinger, 25-22.

"This team is really playing pretty well right now," said Head Coach Wendy Smith.  "We still have some things to clean up, but players know their roles and our rotations really seem to be working.  And even when one person has an off night, someone else seems to be stepping up for us.  This is when we want to be playing our best volleyball of the season, but we must continue to play well if we want to achieve our goals.  Everything that we've been working towards all season is right in front of us.  We now have to go out and take it, as nothing will come easy."

Hunsinger led the way again on Tuesday night, just as she has all season.  She finished with her seventh triple-double of the year, contributing 27 assists, 12 kills (on a .348 hitting percentage) and 12 digs.  Costal also finished with 12 kills.  Sophomore Kayla Coughlin (Brunswick, Ohio/Brunswick) added a match-high 20 digs, while McCracken contributed 16 digs.

In addition to the win for Geneva, the Golden Tornadoes also received some help from Bethany on Tuesday night, who defeated first place Westminster in five sets.  Geneva now trails the Titans by just one game in the standings, with two matches remaining in the regular season against Saint Vincent and Westminster. 

Up first for Geneva is its final home regular-season match of the year on Thursday against Saint Vincent, beginning at 7:00 p.m.  Geneva will recognize its three seniors, Costal, Dofelmier and McCracken before the beginning of the match.


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 115 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 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.