NEW WILMINGTON, Pa. – The Geneva College softball team came from behind in the first game of a doubleheader at Westminster College on Wednesday, winning 7-5 in the extra-innings, but the Golden Tornadoes couldn't finish off the sweep, losing the second game, 6-4.  Geneva's record now stands at 12-14, 4-4 in the Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC), while Westminster is now 8-16, 2-6 in the PAC.

In the first game, Geneva got on the board first in the top of the third inning on an RBI-single from freshman Paige Hollinger (Hummelstown, Pa./Lower Dauphin).  Westminster responded in the bottom of the inning against junior starter Bobbi Ann Theiss (East Liverpool, Ohio/Beaver Local) with a two-run homer to take a 2-1 lead.

Geneva answered in the top of the fifth with two runs, as junior April Lude (Canfield, Ohio/Western Reserve) walked to force in a run, and then sophomore Madison Schultz (Cranberry Twp., Pa./Seneca Valley) drove in another run with an RBI-groundout, giving Geneva a 3-2 lead.

However, Westminster scored twice in the bottom of the sixth to take the lead back, 4-3, leaving Geneva needing a run in the top of the seventh inning to keep the game going.  Fortunately, the Golden Tornadoes got just that.  Freshman Sarah Johnson (Highlands Ranch, Colo./Mountain Vista) scored on a close play at the plate from a fielder's choice groundball off the bat of Lude, tying the score at 4-4.

Westminster failed to score in the bottom the inning, sending the game to extra innings.  Geneva took advantage, scoring three times in the eighth.  Sophomore Melice Rodriguez (Caldwell, Idaho/Vallivue) got things rolling with an RBI-double, and freshman Nicole West (Glenwood, Md./McDonogh) and Lude added onto the lead with RBI-singles.  In the bottom of the inning, the Titans scored once, but West came in to relieve Theiss and picked up the save for the 7-5 victory.

West finished a perfect 4-for-4 at the plate, driving in one run.  Johnson went 3-for-5 with three runs and a stolen base.  Lude finished 2-for-4 with three RBIs, while senior Haley Sainato scored twice and stole two more bases.  Theiss picked up the win to move her record to 5-1 on the season.

Sophomore Kyleigh Jo Ward (Laceyville, Pa./Wyalusing) took the ball in the second game, and Westminster took an early lead with single runs off Ward in each of the first two innings, with both runs scoring on two-out hits.

Geneva responded in the top of the third.  After Ward singled with one out, Sainato drove the ball to right-center, over the Westminster outfielders who were playing shallow, and Sainato raced around the bases for an inside-the-park home run.  Then with two outs, West and Lude hit back-to-back doubles to put Geneva in front, 3-2.

Unfortunately, the lead was short-lived.  Westminster took advantage of a Geneva error to score an unearned run in the bottom the third inning, and then the Titans broke the game open with three more runs in the bottom of the fourth, knocking Ward out of the game.  Westminster was helped by two more Geneva errors in the inning.

Geneva got one run back in the top of the sixth on a double from West and an RBI-single from Hollinger, but that was as close as the Golden Tornadoes would get, losing the second game, 6-4.

Ward took the loss, pitching 3.2 innings and giving up nine hits, three walks and six runs, though her defense did not help her out.  West had another strong game, going 2-for-3 with two doubles and two runs, while Sainato finished 1-for-4 with the home run and two RBIs.

"It's disappointing when you work so hard to win game one and don't finish the deal in game two," said Head Coach Van Zanic.  "We hit the ball well today and gave ourselves a chance in the second game, but again poor defense reared its ugly head.  It's nice to get contributions from a lot of people, but we are still leaving too many opportunities out there."

Geneva next heads to Waynesburg for a doubleheader on Friday starting 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.