BEAVER FALLS, Pa. – The Wilmington College Quakers took advantage of their chances on Saturday afternoon to come away with a 4-1 victory over Geneva on Reeves Field in a game that was more evenly played than the final score might indicate. Geneva dropped its first game in six matches, falling to 2-2-3, while Wilmington improved to 4-2-1.
Wilmington got the board early when Grant Murray's shot was almost saved by a great attempt from senior goalkeeper Gabriel Kemp (Normalville, Pa./Connellsville). Kemp got a piece of the ball on his diving attempt, but the ball hit the inside of the far post and trickled in. The goal in the 14th minute gave the Quakers the early advantage.
Geneva caught a bad break in the 22nd minute when a Wilmington cross through the box deflected of a Geneva defender's foot and went into the net, doubling the Quaker lead. That's where the score stayed heading into the break.
Wilmington caught another break three minutes into the second half when senior Antonio Fiordilino (McDonald, Pa./West Allegheny) twisted his knee and went down while holding possession in Geneva's half of the field. The Quakers jumped on the loose ball and went on a counter-attack, with Wilmington's Brady Vilvens taking advantage to score the Quakers' third goal. Wilmington added a fourth goal 12 minutes later off the foot of Yusef Muqtadir on a nice combination play, putting Geneva in a 4-0 hole.
Geneva pulled one back when freshman George Cottenden (West Lake, Ohio/Westside Christian) was taken down in the box in the 81st minute, and Fiordilino converted the resulting penalty kick to get Geneva on the board and finish out the scoring.
The final stats show a fairly evenly played game. Wilmington held a small 11-9 advantage in shots, and both squads finished with three corner kicks.
The men wrap up their non-conference schedule next week with a game at Penn State Behrend on Wednesday. Geneva begins conference play next Friday with a road match at Thiel.
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).
