BEAVER FALLS, Pa. – The Geneva College women's basketball team broke out of its offensive slump in a big way on Wednesday night by breaking the single game school scoring record in a 114-79 victory over Thiel inside Metheny Fieldhouse. That surpassed the prior record of 112 points set back in 1994 against Lake Erie College. The much-needed win broke a six-game losing streak and improved Geneva's record to 3-12 overall, 3-7 in the Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC), while Thiel dropped to 2-12, 1-9 in the PAC.
The women had been waiting for a night where the shots started falling after shooting just 19% from three-point range during their losing streak. A three-pointer from sophomore Abby Shoaff a minute into the game proved a sign of things to come for the Golden Tornadoes. A minute later senior Isabella Roth knocked down a long range shot to give Geneva its first lead, 6-5, a lead the Golden Tornadoes would ultimately not give back.
A three-pointer from sophomore Taylor Haring, another from Roth, and a jumper from junior Mia San Nicolas extended the Geneva edge to 18-11 with three minutes remaining in the first quarter. Freshman Hailey Carroll then fired in a 30-foot shot at the quarter buzzer, while being fouled, to give the Golden Tornadoes a 30-21 lead at the first break. The women were 6-of-12 from long range in the quarter.
Another three-pointer from Carroll three minutes into the second quarter gave Geneva its first double digit lead of the game, 37-27. More three-pointers from sophomore Lily Ybarra, junior Emily Bucheit and Roth over the course of the quarter pushed out the Golden Tornado edge to 61-40 at the halftime break.
Geneva put the game away early in the third quarter. San Nicolas opened with a jumper, followed by back-to-back three-pointers from Haring and Shoaff, pushing the lead to 69-40, and the Tomcats would never get closer than 24 points the rest of the way. While the outside shooting for the Golden Tornadoes cooled down in the second half, the offense did not, as Geneva was able to keep the scoreboard moving with points in the paint. The Golden Tornadoes led 90-55 at the final break.
The only question left going into the fourth quarter was whether the Golden Tornadoes would break the record. The answer came with one minute remaining when, fittingly, another three-pointer from Shoaff broke the record as the women closed out the victory, 114-79.
Geneva finished with six players in double figures in a very balanced attack. Haring led the team with 17 points, including 3-of-4 shooting from deep. Freshman Bailee Fletcher earned her first start of the season and finished with 10 points and 10 rebounds. Roth knocked down four three-pointers while scoring 16 points. San Nicolas added 15 points and nine rebounds, junior Cynthia Stewart 13 points, and Ybarra equaled her career-high with 10 points.
As a team Geneva shot 41-of-99 (41%) from the floor, including 16-of-50 (32%) from three-point range. The Golden Tornadoes forced the Tomcats into 34 turnovers leading to 37 points. Thiel's Destiny Johnson led the Tomcats with 25 points and 21 rebounds.
The women will return to action on Saturday when Geneva travels to Saint Vincent for a 2:00 p.m. tipoff.
Through purposeful learning in a community reflecting the full spectrum of God's kingdom, a Geneva College experience inspires students to discover a faith-life calling in service to God and neighbor. Offering 195+ traditional undergraduate majors and programs, fully online Adult Degree Programs and high-demand graduate degrees, Geneva's programs are recognized for their high quality and affordability. 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 the International Association for Christian Education (IACE).
