BEAVER FALLS, Pa. – The Geneva and Westminster men's basketball matchup in Metheny Fieldhouse on Wednesday night set up quite well.  Both teams entered with 5-1 records in the Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC), with the winner gaining the inside track for first place in the regular season standings.  Unfortunately for Geneva, Westminster got out to a huge lead, and a furious rally fell just short with the Titans holding on for a 79-78 victory.  Westminster improved to 6-1, while Geneva had its five-game winning streak snapped and dropped to 5-2.

This was a game that hearkened back to the days when Geneva and Westminster were two of the premier programs in the NAIA in the Western Pennsylvania area and games were played before packed houses and regularly went down to the wire.  There was no packed house tonight, with pandemic restrictions negating that possibility.  The game figured to be a contrast between two styles, with Geneva using speed and three-point shooting to excel, and Westminster entering with a significant size advantage, particularly on the boards.  Early on, everything favored the Titans.

Junior Matt Veynovich (Pompono Beach, Fla./Highlands Academy) opened the scoring with a bucket, but that proved to be the only lead of the game for the Golden Tornadoes.  Westminster responded with five straight before a bucket from sophomore Lyle Tipton (Glenside, Pa./Phil-Mont Christian Academy) cut the deficit to one point, 5-4.

The Titans quickly answered with six straight points to go ahead 11-4 just over three minutes into the game, with most of Westminster's baskets coming at the rim.  The Titans continued to dominate the interior in the first half, getting to the rim easily and either converting layups, or grabbing offensive rebounds and laying it back in.  A three-point play from Veynovich pulled Geneva to within 23-15 with 12:11 remaining the half, but Westminster continued to have its way.  The Titans eventually built their lead to 35-18 with 7:48 remaining in the half, threatening to blow Geneva away.

The Golden Tornadoes responded by going to a zone defense to combat Westminster's size and driving ability, and it seemed to spark Geneva.  Back-to-back three-pointer from senior Joel Stutz (Evans City, Pa./Butler Community College) got the Geneva offense going, and two minutes later a third three-pointer by Stutz pulled the Golden Tornadoes to within 36-29 with 1:50 remaining.  Westminster quickly pushed its lead back to double digits, but a short jumper by Tipton right before the halftime buzzer cut the deficit to 40-31.

Geneva continued its surge early in the second half.  Senior AJ Stroop (Hillsboro, Ohio/Lynchburg-Clay) opened with a layup, followed by a three-pointer from Tipton.  After a Westminster bucket, Veynovich drained a three-pointer, and Tipton followed with a layup to cut the Titan lead to 42-41 with 16:50.  Westminster responded with two three-pointers of its own, sandwiched around a bucket from Tipton, but Veynovich answered with another three-pointer to pull Geneva within two points, 48-46.  After a Geneva stop, the Golden Tornadoes had a chance to take a lead, but Stutz's three-point shot rimmed out.  It would prove to be the last time Geneva had the ball with a chance to take the lead.

Westminster scored the next seven points to extend its lead back out, 55-46, with 12:37 remaining.  Just over a minute later, though, three-pointer from senior RJ Bell (Canonsburg, Pa./Canon McMillan) got Geneva to within 58-54, but the Titans once again had an answer.  This time Westminster used a 13-4 run to take a 71-58 lead with 5:01 remaining.  The Titans kept the lead primarily in double digits until the final minute.  Westminster used a free throw with 47 seconds remaining to go ahead 76-65 before Geneva's furious rally ensued.

Veynovich hit a three-pointer while being fouled, and he converted the four-point play with 37 seconds remaining.  Geneva forced a Westminster turnover, and Tipton scored while being fouled seconds later to bring Geneva to 76-72.  After two Titan free throws, Tipton was fouled on a three-point shot and he converted all three free throws with 12 seconds remaining to close to within 78-75.  Unfortunately, Westminster converted a free throw in the closing moments, and a three-pointer from sophomore Isaac Massie (Cross Lanes, W.Va./Homeschool) at the buzzer was one point too little, with Westminster surviving 79-78.

"We lost to a very good team," said Head Coach Jeff Santarsiero.  "Westminster is very athletic, and they have a lot of size and a lot of weapons.  We didn't play very well early, and that really left us in a big hole.  We really struggled on the boards and couldn't contain their dribble penetration in the first half.  I'm proud of the way these guys battled until the end, though.  We just ran out of time, but this one is now behind us and we'll work to get ready for Thiel on Saturday."

Tipton led the offense with 23 points.  Stutz finished with 16 points, while Veynovich added 15 points.  Both Stutz and Veynovich knocked down three three-pointers.  Geneva shot 41.5% from the floor, including a 10-of-26 (39%) effort from three-point range, while Westminster finished at 42.5% from the floor.  Westminster won the battle of the boards, outrebounding Geneva 49-36, including 14 offensive rebounds.  Isaac Stamatiades, Westminster 1^st Team All-PAC senior, led the Titans with 20 points and 15 rebounds.

Geneva gets right back into action this Saturday with a 1:00 p.m. tipoff at Thiel.  The Golden Tornadoes will finish out their regular season the following Saturday with a 7:00 p.m. matchup against Franciscan on Senior Day.


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 is included on Kiplinger's Personal Finance's "2019 Best College Values" list and has one of the top 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.