BEAVER FALLS, Pa. – The Geneva College baseball team hosted Kent State Tuscarawas for its final non-conference doubleheader of the season on Tuesday afternoon.  The Golden Tornadoes got off to poor starts in both games, and it cost Geneva as it lost both games by scores of 7-6 and 11-5.  Kent State Tuscarawas finished its season with an 8-6 record, while Geneva is now 6-26.

Freshman Elijah Small (Connellsville, Pa./Connellsville Area) took the mound in game one, and Kent State Tuscarawas struck for two runs in the first.  The Golden Eagles added three more runs in the second after the first two batters were retired, putting Geneva in a 5-0 hole.

Geneva got on the scoreboard with two runs in the bottom of the fourth.  The Golden Tornadoes loaded the bases with no outs, and freshman Alex Fee (New Castle, Pa./New Castle) drove in one with a groundout.  Freshman Nick Rubis (New Castle, Pa./New Castle) followed with an RBI-single to drive in the second run.  The Golden Tornadoes had a chance for more, but they left the bases loaded.

Kent State Tuscarawas answered right back with two runs of its own in the top of the fifth off reliever Jason Bagliore (Brooklyn, N.Y./Millenium) to restore its five run lead, 7-2.

Geneva started a two-out rally in the bottom of the sixth on a double from Rubis.  Senior Mark Overmier (Crofton, Md./Mount St. Joseph) singled home one run, while two other runs later scored on wild pitches.  Once again, though, Geneva left two runners in scoring position when the rally ended, but the Golden Tornadoes had closed the deficit to 7-5.

The Golden Tornadoes had one last chance in the bottom of the seventh, scoring once, but Geneva left the tying run at second base when the final out was recorded, losing 7-6.

Small took the loss after going 3.1 innings and giving up eight hits and five runs while striking out six.  Rubis finished 2-for-3 with a double, a run scored and an RBI.  Freshman Dwayne Cameron (Homestead, Fla./Everglades Prep Academy) also went 2-for-3 with a run scored and a stolen base.

Game two started just as poorly.  Kent State Tuscarawas took advantage of some command issues by sophomore starter Dylan O'Rourke (Hutchinson, Pa./Yough) to score twice on one hit in the first inning.  The Golden Eagles extended that lead to 5-0 by scoring three times in the top of the third, this time on just one single.

Geneva scored single runs in the bottom of the fourth on an RBI-single from senior Jacob Yarnell (Cochranton, Pa./Cochranton) and in the sixth on an RBI-groundout from senior Jericho Hilling (Williamsburg, Pa./Hollidaysburg), but Kent State Tuscarawas blew the game open in the top of the seventh with five runs.  Geneva scored three times in the bottom of the seventh to close out the scoring, 11-5.

O'Rourke took the loss, pitching 4.1 innings while giving up six hits, six runs and three walks.  Altogether, four Geneva pitchers issued a total of eight walks and hit four batters.  The Golden Tornadoes also committed four errors, causing much of the damage to be self-inflicted.  Senior Dillon Taggart (Livingston Manor, N.Y./Livingston Manor Central) reached base all four times, going 2-for-2 with a walk, a hit-by-pitch, a run scored and an RBI.  Sophomore Will Yasenka also added two hits, finishing 2-for-3 with a double, a run scored and an RBI.

Geneva finishes out its season with a three-game series against Grove City.  Geneva hosts the Wolverines for one game on Friday, starting at 4:00 p.m., and then plays twice at Grove City on Saturday.


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.