BEAVER FALLS, Pa. – The Geneva College men's soccer team wasn't thrilled to settle for a draw on Tuesday night inside Reeves Stadium against La Roche, but it was better than the alternative. After falling down by two goals, the Golden Tornadoes did manage to battle back and salvage a draw out of the contest, leaving the field with a 2-2 tie. Geneva's record is now 1-1-1, while La Roche is 0-1-1.
The Redhawks jumped out early when Tyler Bryan secured a loose ball just outside the box and hit an impressive strike from 20 yards out into the upper far corner, with nothing sophomore goalkeeper Evan Shale (Duncanville, Pa./Hollidaysburg) could do to stop it. That put Geneva into an early hole.
The Golden Tornadoes dominated the possession over the next 25 minutes, but La Roche caught a huge break in the 32nd minute when a long ball sent into the box glanced off a Geneva head and into the net for an own goal, doubling the Redhawks' lead to 2-0.
Six minutes later Geneva got on the board. Senior Cole Sauer (Middleburg, Pa./Midd-West) was taken down from behind in the box on a short free kick, and senior Paul Peachey (Lititz, Pa./Lancaster Mennonite) stepped up and converted the penalty kick, pulling the Golden Tornadoes within one heading into the halftime break.
La Roche seemed content in the second half to lay back and try to hold onto their lead. However, ten minutes into the second half junior Carnel Kerr (Flankers, Jamaica, Carlynton) was fouled in the box, giving the Golden Tornadoes their second penalty kick, and this time freshman Wil Dunda (Sewickley, Pa./Quaker Valley) stepped up and converted to pull Geneva level.
The final 35 minutes saw Geneva dominate possession, but the Golden Tornadoes struggled to break through the La Roche backline, with the Redhawks seemingly content to wait for a counter-attack opportunity, which never came. However, Geneva's game-winning goal never came either, and the two teams settled for the draw.
Geneva finished with the game with a 12-6 advantage in shots, a 5-2 edge in shots on goal and a 6-0 difference in corner kicks. La Roche played a physical game, resulting in 22 fouls and six yellow cards for the Redhawks.
The men will now head out onto the road for the first time when Geneva travels to Baldwin Wallace on Thursday for a 7:00 p.m. matchup with the Yellow Jackets.
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).
