BLUFFTON, Ohio – The Geneva College women's volleyball team finished up its play at the Bluffton University Sommer Spiketacular Tournament on Saturday, and the Golden Tornadoes came away with a split in its two matches.  Geneva defeated the host Bluffton, 3-1, by a line of 25-19, 21-25, 28-26, 25-19.  In the second match, Heidelberg defeated the Golden Tornadoes by another 3-1 score, 25-20, 23-25, 25-18, 25-18.  Geneva's record now stands at 6-3.

In the first match against Bluffton, Geneva scored the first five points of set one, with junior Daphne Hunsinger (Harleysville, Pa./Christopher Dock) getting back-to-back kills in the stretch.  Bluffton would close to within 16-15, but Geneva scored four of the last five points in the set, the last one on a kill by sophomore Elana Hoppel (Castorland, N.Y./Lowville Academy and Central) to take the set, 25-19.

Geneva put itself in good position midway through the second set, taking a 14-10 lead after an ace from senior Grace McCracken (Bloomington, Ind./Lighthouse Christian Academy).  However, a 10-3 run by Bluffton gave the Beavers a 20-17 lead, and Bluffton held on from there, 25-21.

The third set proved pivotal in the match.  Bluffton jumped out to an early 7-2 lead, but Geneva battled its way back to a 12-12 tie after Hunsinger scored four straight kills for the Golden Tornadoes.  Geneva took its first lead of the set at 19-18 on an ace from sophomore Hannah Dusse (Plant City, Fla./Lakeland Christian), but Bluffton took what looked to be control of the set when it answered with a spurt that put it up 24-21.  However, Geneva staved off four set points in the final moments, and a block from Dusse and freshman Olivia Moore (North Canton, Ohio/Lakeland Christian) completed the comeback, 28-26.

In the fourth set, Bluffton again got out to a lead, going up 12-8 on Geneva.  However, later in the set, the Golden Tornadoes used a 6-1 run, with Hunsinger adding a couple more kills, to take a 17-15 lead, and Geneva followed that with another 6-1 run to end the set to win the match, 25-19.

Hunsinger led the way with her third triple-double of the season, finishing with 32 assists, 16 kills (.448 hitting percentage) and 10 digs.  Moore was big as well, finishing with 13 kills on a .357 hitting percentage.  McCracken had a team-high 19 digs.

In the second match, Geneva took on undefeated Heidelberg.  Heidelberg took an early 7-2 lead in set one.  The Golden Tornadoes battled back, though, and Geneva took its first lead of the set, 18-17, on a kill from senior Kacey Costal (Salem, Ohio/Salem).  However, Heidelberg finished the set on an 8-2 run to take the first set, 25-20.

Heidelberg jumped ahead again in set two, 9-5.  Geneva responded shortly after with a run of its own, 6-1, with Hoppel picking up three kills in the stretch, to take a 14-12 lead.  The set stayed tight the rest of the way, and with Heidelberg holding a 23-22 lead, Geneva scored the last three points to win the set, 25-23.

Geneva carried that momentum into the third set and took an early 8-4 lead.  However, Heidelberg answered with six straight points, and the Golden Tornadoes never got closer than one point the rest of the set, eventually losing 25-18.

Heidelberg took control midway through the fourth set with an 8-2 run to take a commanding 19-12 lead, and the Student Princes cruised from there to a 25-18 victory to finish off the match.

Hoppel led the offense with 13 kills on a .367 hitting percentage.  Costal added ten kills and five blocks.  Hunsinger just missed another triple-double, finishing with 35 assists, 11 digs and 8 kills.  Hunsinger was named to the All-Tournament team after the day was finished.  Sophomore Kayla Coughlin (Brunswick, Ohio/Brunswick) had a team-high 25 digs.

"We knew this tournament was really going to test us," said Head Coach Wendy Smith.  "There were some really good teams here.  We obviously wished we were coming home with more wins, but this gives our team a good idea of where we're at right now and what we need to improve upon heading into conference play.  Ohio Northern and Heidelberg are two of the better teams in NCAA Division III, and we battled each of them."

Geneva opens Presidents' Athletic Conference play next with two matches at Chatham on Saturday.  Geneva opens with Waynesburg at 1:00 p.m. and then follows that with a match against Chatham.


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.