NEW WILMINGTON, Pa. – The Geneva College women's volleyball team traveled to Westminster on Saturday afternoon to take part in its first Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) Championship match in five years, looking for its first title since 2011.  Unfortunately, the Golden Tornadoes played most of the match from behind, and the Titans eventually prevailed in four sets, 25-18, 18-25, 25-19, 25-20.

Geneva scored the first point of the first set, but Westminster answered with six straight as the Golden Tornadoes looked a bit shaky early.  Geneva began to steady itself, but it could never get closer than four points the rest the set, unable to overcome its early deficit, losing 25-18.

Geneva scored the first four points of the second set, with junior Daphne Hunsinger (Harleysville, Pa./Christopher Dock) serving two aces in the opening run.  Westminster battled back to tie the set at 6-6, but the Golden Tornadoes answered with a 5-1 run to regain control of the set, 11-7.  The Titans would get close one last time, getting to within 18-17, but six straight points by Geneva, three on aces by freshman Hope Shook (Bellwood, Pa./Bellwood-Antis) enabled the Golden Tornadoes to pull away for a 25-18 victory to even the match at one set apiece.

Westminster took the early lead in the third set, 4-1, and Geneva struggled to make up the deficit.  The Golden Tornadoes would get to within two points on multiple occasions, but each time Westminster would extend the lead back out, and Geneva would eventually lose the set, 25-19.

The fourth set followed a similar script as Geneva found itself playing from behind again, falling down 3-0, and it once again proved to be a difficult position for the Golden Tornadoes to overcome.  Each time Geneva would close to within a point or two, Westminster would extend its lead back out.  That pattern continued for most of the set, one last time when Geneva closed to 22-20, but Westminster scored the final three points to win 25-20, claiming the PAC Championship.

"I'm really proud of this team and what they've been able to accomplish this season in the conference," said Head Coach Wendy Smith.  "It's really frustrating to play poorly in a match that was so important, but that happens some nights.  I thought we defended well, but we just had too many hitting errors to expect to beat a team like Westminster on the road.  We'll regroup and turn our focus to the Christian National tournament next week."

Shook led the offense with 13 kills, while also contributing five aces.  Freshman Olivia Moore (North Canton, Ohio/Lake Center Christian) added nine kills, while senior Kacey Costal (Salem, Ohio/Salem) added eight kills.  Hunsinger finished with 33 assists and 26 digs.  Sophomore Kayla Coughlin (Brunswick, Ohio/Brunswick) added 24 digs.  Geneva finished with 42 kills, but had 39 attack errors to counter those kills, leaving the Golden Tornadoes with just a .015 hitting percentage for the match.  Hunsinger and Shook were named to the All-Tournament team shortly after the completion of the tournament.

Geneva will now get ready for the National Christian College Athletic Association (NCCAA) Division II Championships, beginning next week with a regional tournament at Boyce College in Louisville, Kentucky.  The winner of the tournament will get an automatic bid to the national tournament the following week at Bob Jones University in Greenville, South Carolina.


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.