GROVE CITY, Pa. – The Geneva College softball team split a pair of games at Grove City on Saturday to move its record to 5-3 on the season.  The Golden Tornadoes dropped a 5-4 decision in the first game but responded with a 5-1 victory in the night cap. Grove City moved to 2-2 on the young season.
 
Sophomore hurler Haley Smith (Joshua Tree, CA) deserved a better fate as the game one starter. Smith finished off a complete game by allowing just seven hits and one earned run while striking out nine and allowing just one walk. Smith retired the first six Grove City hitters before Geneva's offense struck first in the top of the third. Hannah Raygor (Germantown, MD) started an impressive day at the plate with an RBI double that scored Madison Smith (Joshua Tree, CA) to get the Golden Tornadoes on the board.
 
In the bottom of the inning, the Wolverines picked up their first base runner of the game on a Geneva error to start the inning. With two outs, Grove City managed to load the bases and it appeared as though Smith would wiggle out of trouble but on a third strike the ball got back to the back stop allowing the tying run to score and an error on the ensuing throw back to home plate allowed the go-ahead run to score. When the dust settled on the third inning, Grove City had plated four runs.
 
Trailing 5-1 heading into the seventh inning, Geneva made a late game push that fell short. A two-run double from Madison Smith, followed by an RBI double from Peri Ceasri (El Dorado Hills, CA) pulled Geneva to within a run with two runners still in scoring position with just one out. The Golden Tornadoes were unable to push the tying run across and came up on the wrong side of a 5-4 decision.
 
Raygor led the offense going 3-3 with an RBI while Madison Smith and Sarah Johnson (Highlands Ranch, CO) chipped in with two hits each in the loss.
 
Geneva opened the scoring in game two with a pair of runs in the top of the first. Loading the bases with no outs, the Golden Tornadoes got a run scoring single from Ceasri that plated Johnson and then Raygor scored on a sacrifice fly from Madison Schultz (Cranberry Twp., PA). The score remained 2-0 through the first five innings as junior pitcher Nicole West (Glenwood, MD) kept the Grove City hitters off balance for most of the afternoon.
 
The Golden Tornadoes extended their lead with three runs in the top of the sixth. Johnson delivered a two-run double and then scored on a Raygor sacrifice fly to cap off the three-run rally. Grove City scored its lone run in the bottom of the sixth before West shut things down by finishing off the complete game.
 
Johnson, Madison Smith, and Kyleigh Jo Ward (Laceyville, PA) each picked up a pair of hits with Johnson driving in two and scoring two in the victory. West finished her performance in the circle by allowing just five hits and one earned run to go along with three strikeouts and no walks.
 
"We had more than enough chances to break things open in the first game but were never able to get that big hit," said head coach Van Zanic. "Our defense let us down in one inning and as is usually the case, it came back to bite us. Haley (Smith) deserved a better fate as she put together a dominant performance. Nicki (West) pitched her best game of the year to help lift us in game two, which we really needed. We have a good balanced offensive attack right now and am very excited about the progression of the team two weeks into the season."
 
Geneva returns to action on Tuesday when it welcomes Waynesburg University to Beaver Falls for a doubleheader scheduled to begin at 3:00 p.m.


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.