BEAVER FALLS, Pa. – Both games of the Geneva College softball doubleheader on Saturday afternoon against Saint Vincent came down to the final inning, with the two teams splitting the two one-run games.  Saint Vincent won the first game, 5-4, while Geneva came back to win game two, 8-7.  Geneva's record is now 29-5, 12-2 in the Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC), while Saint Vincent's record stands at 12-15-1 overall, 6-8 in the PAC.

Junior Nicole West (Glenwood, Md./McDonogh) entered the circle in game one, and an error allowed Saint Vincent to get an early 1-0 lead.  The Bearcats added single runs in the second and fifth innings to take a 3-0 lead, with Geneva's offense struggling to get going.

The Golden Tornadoes finally got on the board in the bottom of the fifth, scoring twice with two outs. Sophomore Peri Ceasri (El Dorado Hills, Cali./Vista Del Lago) and senior Marina Manuppelli (Mars, Pa./Mars) hit back-to-back RBI-singles to cut the deficit to 3-2.

Sophomore Haley Smith (Joshua Tree, Cali./Yucca Valley) relieved West in the sixth, and she quickly retired the Bearcats in order.  The Geneva offense stirred to life again with two outs in the bottom of the inning.  Junior Madison Smith (Joshua Tree, Cali./Yucca Valley) hit a two-out RBI-double to tie the score, and Smith came home on junior Sarah Johnson's (Highlands Ranch, Colo./Mountain Vista) RBI-single to give Geneva its first lead of the game, 4-3.

However, Geneva couldn't close the game out.  The first two batters reached base in the top of the seventh, and after two batters were retired, Smith gave up a two-out, two-run, bases-loaded single that gave Saint Vincent the lead back, and the Golden Tornadoes went in order in the bottom of the seventh to fall 5-4. 

Smith ended up with the loss, dropping her record to 14-3.  Johnson, Ceasri, Manuppelli and Smith each had two hits to lead the Geneva offense.

Geneva played from behind again in game two after Saint Vincent scored three times in the top of the first off Haley Smith, who started game two. 

The Golden Tornadoes answered right back in the bottom of the inning, scoring twice on an RBI-single from West, and Geneva's second run scored on a double-play ground ball.

Saint Vincent put up another big inning in the top of the third, scoring four times, though most of the damage was self-inflicted.  The Bearcats scored those four runs courtesy of a walk, a hit batter, an error and two singles.  Three of the four runs were unearned.  That gave Saint Vincent a 7-2 lead.

The Golden Tornadoes answered with two runs in the bottom of the third, with Madison Smith and Johnson each picking up RBIs, but Geneva left the bases loaded for the second straight inning.

Sophomore Hannah Raygor (Germantown, Md./Seneca Valley) added an RBI-single in the bottom of the fifth to pull Geneva within 7-5.  Then in the bottom of the sixth, it was junior Sidney Young (Pittsburgh, Pa./Plum) who had the big hit, a two-run, two-out double to center to tie the score at 7-7.

Smith worked around a two-out single in the top of the seventh to keep the game tied.  Johnson led off the bottom of inning with a single, and she later stole second.  Then with two outs, Ceasri hit a line drive to the gap that easily brought home Johnson for the winning run, 8-7.

Smith earned the win, pitching all seven innings, giving up seven hits and seven runs, though just three were earned, while striking out four, moving her record to 15-3.

Johnson finished game two with a 4-for-5 effort, scoring twice and driving in a run.  Senior Madison Schultz (Cranberry Township, Pa./Seneca Valley) was solid at the plate as well, going 2-for-4 with two runs scored.

The split drops Geneva into a tie for first place with Westminster entering the last week of the season.  Because Geneva swept Westminster earlier in the conference season, the Golden Tornadoes hold the tiebreaker.  Geneva finishes the regular season with a doubleheader at Thiel on Wednesday and then a home doubleheader with W&J on Saturday.


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).