BEAVER FALLS, Pa. – The Geneva College offense could never get on track against Case Western Reserve on Saturday night inside Reeves Stadium, and a close first half turned into a large final margin for the Golden Tornadoes in a 34-7 loss to the Spartans.  Geneva dropped to 0-4 on the season, 0-2 in the Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC), while Case Western Reserve improved to 3-1, 2-0 in the PAC.

Both teams came up empty on their first two offensive possessions of the game, but it was the Spartans who got on the board first late in the first quarter with a 14-yard touchdown run from Gage Duesler to take a 7-0 lead.

Geneva put together its best offensive drive on the ensuing possession, traveling 75 yards in 10 plays, capped off on a one-yard sneak by sophomore Brutus Ogilvie (Salem, Ohio/United) to even the score at 7-7.

Case Western Reserve managed one more scoring drive in the first half, finding the endzone on a short run from Antonio Orsini with just over two minutes remaining in the half to take a 13-7 lead into halftime.

Geneva received the opening kickoff of the second half and marched down to the Spartan 30-yardline.  However, on fourth-and-two, sophomore Josh Syster (Clymer, Pa./Purchaseline) was stopped one yard short of the sticks.

Unfortunately, that would prove to be the deepest the Golden Tornadoes advanced into Case Western Reserve territory in the second half, as the offense was stymied by the Spartan defense.  Case Western Reserve scored one touchdown in the third quarter and two more in the fourth quarter to finish out the scoring, 34-7.

While Spartan quarterback Drew Saxon came into the game drawing all the headlines, it was actually Orsini who did a lot of the damage for Case Western.  The big running back rushed for 176 yards on 29 carries, including two touchdowns, as the Spartans finished with 237 yards rushing and 442 yards of total offense.

Geneva finished with 172 yards rushing and 219 of total offense in the game.  Syster led the team with 79 yards rushing. 

Senior Nicolas Ottaviani (Beaver Falls, Pa./Riverside) led the Geneva defense with a career-high 12 tackles, while sophomore Brandon Graham (Monaca, Pa./Central Valley) also added a career-high 10 stops.  Junior Damian Lomeli (Tampa, Fla./Gaither) finished with seven tackles and an interception, his third of the season.

Geneva is off next week before resuming play on Saturday, October 8, when the Golden Tornadoes host Allegheny on Homecoming 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 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).