BEAVER FALLS, Pa. – The women's soccer match between Geneva College and Washington & Jefferson College on Saturday afternoon represented a chance for one team to punch their ticket into the Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) playoffs, and on this day it was W&J who clinched a spot in the playoffs with a 5-2 victory over the Golden Tornadoes. W&J improved to 8-7-2 overall, 5-2-1 in the PAC, while Geneva dropped to 5-11 overall, 4-4 in the PAC.
Geneva had the early pressure, with junior Katherine Estep (Dublin, Pa./Pennridge) almost getting the Golden Tornadoes on the board in the 9th minute when her header bounced off the crossbar.
The Presidents began to get the better of the play, though, and W&J got on the board in the 26th minute when Makenna Mann found the back of the net. Just two minutes later, the Presidents doubled their lead on a goal from Katie Brown, and then W&J added a third goal in the 36th minute on a goal by Katie Hahn, giving the Presidents a commanding 3-0 lead.
Two minutes later, junior Lydia Beare (Mansfield, Ohio/Mansfield Christian) got Geneva on the board when her well-taken free kick from 20 yards away curled into the corner, pulling the Golden Tornadoes within 3-1 going into the break.
W&J added to its lead just four minutes into the second half on a goal by McKenna Lewis. Freshman Lillie Berryman (Manfield, Ohio/Mansfield Christian) scored in the 66th minute when she pushed a loose ball in front of the net just over the line in huddle of several players. However, that was as close as Geneva would get, with W&J adding one more goal late to close out the scoring, 5-2.
W&J actually didn't finish with a big edge in the final stats, despite the score. The Presidents did hold a 17-15 advantage in shots, including an 11-7 edge in shots on goal. W&J also had a 6-4 advantage in corner kicks. The Presidents just did a better job of creating more dangerous chances, which they converted. Freshman goalkeeper Jade Farnsworth (New Brighton, Pa./Riverside) made six saves in the loss.
Despite the loss, Geneva is not out of playoff contention. The Golden Tornadoes have one regular season game remaining, on Tuesday at Waynesburg. A win or a tie against the Yellow Jackets would clinch a playoff spot for Geneva. If the Golden Tornadoes lose, they will need help in the form of a Westminster defeat of Franciscan in order to make it into the PAC playoffs.
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 145 traditional undergraduate majors and programs, fully online Adult Degree Programs and high-demand graduate degrees, Geneva's programs are recognized for their high quality. Geneva has one of the top 100 undergraduate engineering programs in the nation, according to
U.S. News and World Report. 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. Geneva was founded and is governed by the Reformed Presbyterian Church of North America (RPCNA) and is a founding member of both the Council for Christian Colleges and Universities (CCCU) and IACE (International Association for Christian Education).
