BEAVER FALLS, Pa. – The Geneva College men's soccer team rebounded on Wednesday night from a tough weekend to open the season, controlling the play for most of the match in a 2-0 victory over Franciscan. Geneva picked up its first win of the season to move its record to 1-2, while Franciscan fell to 0-1-1.
Neither team could find the back of the net in the first half, as scoring chances were hard to come by for Geneva. The Golden Tornadoes controlled possession for significant parts of the half, and they outshot the Barons 5-1 in the half, but they went into the halftime break in a scoreless tie, 0-0.
Geneva almost broke through in the 54
th minute when sophomore
Cole Sauer (Middleburg, Pa./Midd-West) headed one into the back of the net, but the assistant referee ruled Sauer was just offside. Nine minutes later, senior
Jake Broadwick (McKees Rocks, Pa./Robinson Township Christian) put Geneva on the board in the 63
rd minute after sophomore
Ian Gelsinger (Greencastle, Pa./Greencastle-Antrim) headed one back across the box, and Broadwick slotted it inside the near post to put the Golden Tornadoes up, 1-0.
Geneva kept the pressure up and had several chances to extend its lead as the second half continued. However, it wasn't until the 90
th minute that sophomore
Alex Yoder (Milton, Pa./Milton) made a 30-yard weaving run through and around the Franciscan defense before lacing a ball from 18 yards out into the upper left corner to put the game away, and Geneva finished off the match, 2-0.
"I am really proud of the boys' effort, focus and grit tonight," said Head Coach
Gary Dunda. "Franciscan is a good team, and it took a total team effort to defeat them this evening."
Geneva outshot Franciscan 14-5, including a 5-1 advantage in shots on goal. Yoder was especially dangerous on the night, particularly in the second half, as he finished with five shots, with Broadwick adding three shots of his own. Geneva also finished with seven corner kicks, compared to none for Franciscan. Freshman
Gabe Kemp (Normalville, Pa./Connellsville) had a relatively quiet night in his first career start, making a fairly routine stop for the only save of the night he was called on for, enabling him to pick up the shutout.
Geneva continues its season-opening homestand on Saturday when it hosts Wittenberg at 1:00 p.m. at Merriman Athletic Complex.
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.
