BEAVER FALLS, Pa. – Head Coach Wendy Smith had been waiting all season for this young Geneva College women's volleyball team to put a full match together, and the ladies did mostly that against Thiel on Tuesday night with an impressive win over the Tomcats in straight sets 25-11, 25-17, 25-21.  Geneva improved to 6-11 with the victory, 3-3 in the Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC).

Thiel came into the match with a rough 1-11 record, but the young Tomcats boast some talented freshmen, including the PAC leading hitter in freshman Maria Torres.  Thiel had also played a challenging non-conference schedule, and last week the Tomcats took first-place Westminster to five sets before falling, so the Golden Tornadoes knew they would need to play well tonight to come away with a win.

Thiel jumped ahead 4-2 in the first set, but a 5-1 run gave Geneva its first lead, with freshman Megan Veon (New Castle, Pa./Mohawk) contributing two kills and two blocks in the run.  A moment later, the Golden Tornadoes scored five straight points behind two kills from freshman Calyne Schmidt (Lacey, Wash./North Thurston) and a kill from sophomore Savannah Byers (Lancaster, Pa./Conestoga Valley) to take a 13-7 lead, and the Tomcats never threatened again.  After a Thiel point, Geneva added five more points, with freshman Kami Mummau (Mount Joy, Pa./Mount Calvary Christian) contributing back-to-back kills and sophomore Tess Neville (Lisbon, Ohio/Crestview) adding an ace.  In fact, at one point the Golden Tornadoes were on a 14-2 run, and Veon finished the set off with a kill, 25-11.  Geneva hit .276 in the set.

The second set went back-and-forth early on, with neither team leading by more than two points.  Schmidt had three kills early and Neville two kills as the teams traded points.  However, with Geneva trailing 14-13, a block from Veon and sophomore Samantha Peachey (Colorado Springs, Colo./Liberty) started a four-point run, and after a Tomcat point, Geneva added four more points.  Neville contributed back-to-back kills in the stretch, giving the Golden Tornadoes a 21-15 lead, and another kill by Veon finished off the second set, 25-17.  Geneva improved their hitting percentage to .387 in the set.

Geneva's only minor struggles occurred early in the third set.  Thiel jumped out to a 4-1 lead and led for most of the first half of the set.  Trailing 14-11, though, the Golden Tornadoes turned it around, with a Byers kill and an ace from junior libero Maggie Townsend (Beaver Falls, Pa./Beaver County Christian) starting an 8-1 run.  Veon added back-to-back kills in the run, giving Geneva a 19-15 lead, and the Tomcats never got closer than two points the rest of the way.  Schmidt and Byers closed out the match with a block, 25-21.

The Golden Tornadoes received strong contributions from a number of players.  Schmidt finished with a team-high 11 kills, while Veon had eight kills, on a .538 hitting percentage, along with a team-high five blocks.  Neville also finished with eight kills, on a .304 hitting percentage.  Peachey had 28 assists and a team-high 12 digs.  Townsend added 11 digs and three aces, while Mummau contributed 10 digs and five kills.  As a team Geneva hit a season-best .287, picking up 38 kills with just nine errors.

"I am obviously very pleased with the way we played tonight," said Smith.  "We have really been working with the team to always think next play, and tonight was one of the first matches all season where we didn't give up multiple big runs.  I thought we played with more poise and confidence.  Thiel has a lot of talent, so to control the match pretty much from start to finish was very encouraging.  We not only played well, but I thought we played smart most of the time, which has been a challenge at times for this young team.  So, while there is still plenty of room for improvement, I'm definitely encouraged by tonight's performance."

Geneva stays at home this Saturday for its first home stand of the season.  The Golden Tornadoes will host a tri-match on Homecoming, starting with a match against Franciscan at 9:00 a.m.  Geneva will then play Bethany at around 1:00 p.m. to close out the 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 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).