BEAVER FALLS, Pa. – The Geneva College women's basketball team entered Wednesday night's Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) matchup against Thiel riding a long losing streak, and the Golden Tornadoes finished the night not only with a victory, but also with its leading scorer grabbing a couple impressive records.  Junior Lauren Tipton (Glenside, Pa./Phil-Mont Christian) broke Geneva's single-game scoring record with 40 points, and she also grabbed 27 rebounds, which is the most on record in recent history for the women.  Geneva improved to 2-13 overall, 1-7 in the PAC, while Thiel fell to 0-16, 0-8 in the PAC.

Both teams entered the game riding long losing streaks, with Thiel still winless on the season, so someone was going to go home happy on Wednesday night, and it proved to be the Golden Tornadoes.

Junior Emily Melnek (Poland, Ohio/Poland) opened the game with a three-pointer just seconds into the game, and Geneva never looked back.  A layup by Tipton a minute later increased the lead to 5-0, and it proved to be a sign of things to come.  Back-to-back baskets by Melnek and Tipton midway through the quarter increased the Golden Tornado lead to 17-5, and a rebound and basket by sophomore Shannon Wolfe (Alliance, Ohio/West Branch) at the first quarter buzzer gave Geneva a 24-10 lead.

The Tomcats had no answer for Tipton down low, and Geneva kept feeding its low post player.  In addition, when the Golden Tornadoes missed an outside shot, it was often Tipton who grabbed the rebound and put it back in.  She opened the second quarter with a bucket, and another layup midway into the quarter gave Geneva a 33-10 lead, its biggest of the half.  The Golden Tornadoes went to half holding a 42-22 lead after another Tipton layup in the final minute.  She went to the locker room with 19 points and 13 rebounds.

Sophomore Paige Repine (Marion Center, Pa./Marion Center) opened the second half with a three-pointer, and on Geneva's next possession Tipton grabbed two offensive rebounds before adding another layup to her stats.  At that point the only question was the final margin of victory, and by the start of the fourth quarter, it became apparent Tipton had chance for the record.  Much to the delight of her teammates, Tipton scored with a minute to go to move past Tipton's teammate from the past two seasons, Callie Ford, who opened last season with a 39-point effort.  Geneva closed out the win, 86-53.

"We finally played four quarters tonight, and the final score showed that," said Head Coach Michael Grinder.  "It was obviously fun to see Lauren break the scoring record tonight, and it was neat to see how excited her teammates were for her.  She's one of the best players in the conference, and tonight was her night.  This was a game that we needed to win, and a game we felt we should win on our home floor, so hopefully this will give us some momentum heading into the last month of the season."

Tipton's final line showed 40 points on 17-of-22 shooting, 6-of-8 from the free throw line.  Her 27 rebounds, including 14 offensive boards, are also the most rebounds in recent history for a Geneva women's player, though records were not kept well early on the in the program's history.  Melnek and senior Jeana Luciana (Oakmont, Pa./Saint Joseph) also reached double figures, each finishing with 12 points.  Geneva shot 47% from the floor, while Thiel finished with a 30% shooting percentage.

Geneva heads out onto the road on Saturday for a road trip at Bethany.  The Golden Tornadoes will be back home next Wednesday for a 5:30 p.m. tipoff against W&J.


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.