FORT PIERCE, Fla. – The Geneva College baseball team is making a habit of late inning comebacks down in Florida, and Wednesday was no different.  Despite falling down by four runs to Cairn University midway through the game, the Golden Tornadoes rallied back, using a ninth inning comeback to send the game to extra innings, where freshman Dwayne Cameron (Homestead, Fla./Everglades Prep Academy) sent Geneva to a walk-off win with a single in the tenth inning.  It was Geneva's third straight comeback win, improving its record to 3-1, while Cairn fell to 3-4.

Cairn jumped out to an early lead with two runs in the top of the first inning off sophomore starting pitcher Dylan O'Rourke (Hutchinson, Pa./Yough), the big hit a two-out triple that plated both runs.

Geneva had multiple runners on base the first two innings, but the Golden Tornadoes couldn't dent the scoreboard until the bottom of the fourth inning when freshman Austin Willis (Temecula, Ca./Linfield Christian) singled home senior Dillon Taggart (Livingston Manor, NY/Livingston Manor Central) with two outs to cut the deficit to 2-1.

Cairn answered back with two more runs in the top of the fifth inning, though, to push the Highlanders' lead to 4-1.  Cairn added another run in the top of the sixth against freshman pitcher Angel Padron (Pembroke Pines, Fla./Pembroke Pines Charter) to make it 5-1.

Geneva responded with two runs in its half of the sixth inning.  Senior Jericho Hilling (Williamsburg, Pa./Hollidaysburg) led off with a walk, and sophomore Garrison Wieland (Sharpsville, Pa./Sharpsville) doubled to put runners at second and third.  One run scored on a ground out from Taggart, and then Willis drove in Wieland with an RBI-triple.

At that point, Padron stepped up and kept the Highlanders offense in check, setting the stage for another dramatic comeback.  The score stayed 5-3 heading into the bottom of the ninth inning, where Geneva loaded the bases with one out.  After a strikeout, the Golden Tornadoes caught a break when Hilling hit a high pop-up on the infield, and between the wind and the sun, the first baseman lost the ball, allowing it to drop and the two tying runs to score.

That rally sent things to extra innings where Geneva finished off the comeback.  With two outs and runners on the corners, Cameron singled just over the second baseman, ending the game and setting off a wild celebration on the field.

"We're following the same pattern since we arrived down here," said Head Coach Alan Sumner.  "We give up some early runs, but then our pitching settles down and we find a way to come back late.  Dylan pitched a solid game to start, and then Angel gave us a huge lift in relief.  The guys kept battling, even when things didn't look great, and we caught a break late and made it count."

Padron picked up the win, pitching five innings in relief while giving up just four hits and one earned run.  Willis and Taggart both finished 2-of-5 from the plate, with Willis scoring a run and driving in two while Taggart added a run and an RBI.  Hilling was 1-for-3 with a run and two RBIs.

The Golden Tornadoes are off tomorrow before playing Marywood University twice on Friday, the first game starting at 10:00 a.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.