BEAVER FALLS, Pa. – The Geneva and Waynesburg women's soccer teams entered their match on Tuesday night knowing a spot in the Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) playoffs was on the line, and on this evening, the Yellow Jackets' offense proved too tough for the women to overcome, with Waynesburg prevailing, 5-2. Geneva's season ends with a 5-9-2 record overall, 4-5-1 in the PAC, while Waynesburg earns the final spot in the PAC playoffs.
Waynesburg came into the game with a one-point advantage in the PAC standings, meaning Geneva had to win the game, while the Yellow Jackets would advance with just a tie. Waynesburg also came in with one of the top offenses in the PAC, while Geneva came in with its defense as its strength. The plan was to try to keep it a low scoring affair, and things could not have started much worse for the Golden Tornadoes.
Just over three minutes into the game, Waynesburg's Reagan Mittendorf received a ball in the middle of the box with space, and she put the Yellow Jackets immediately ahead with a shot into the upper corner. Six minutes later, Julz Mohrbacher corralled a loose ball in the box and scored to double Waynesburg's lead.
Geneva did respond immediately. The Golden Tornadoes got on the board less than 30 seconds later when, shortly after the kickoff, freshman Noelle Beare sent a ball into a space that freshman Abby Stover ran on to, and Stover slotted her shot across the face of the goal and inside the far post to pull Geneva within 2-1 less than 10 minutes into the game.
However, Waynesburg answered with a third goal just eight minutes later on a long shot from Hailey Gilchrest, meaning the two teams had scored four times in less than 18 minutes, not the type of game that plays to Geneva's strength.
The game did settle down for the remainder of the half, with neither team adding to their goal total heading into the halftime break.
Geneva, knowing it needed at least three goals in the second half to advance, opened the second half by pushing players up the field while leaving its defense with less numbers. It was a risk the Golden Tornadoes had to take, and less than four minutes into the half, Gilchrest struck again from long range, essentially ending Geneva's chances for a comeback.
Waynesburg added a fifth goal in the 68th minute before Geneva closed out the scoring on a long range shot from junior Saige Musser in the 77th minute. Musser collected a loose ball 25 yards from goal, took a touch and then hit a left-footed shot just under the crossbar and out of the goalkeeper's reach.
Geneva finished the game with a 19-16 edge in shots, though many of those shots came from long range. The Yellow Jackets had the better of the chances and held an 8-6 advantage in shots on goal and a 7-4 edge in corner kicks.
The women lose just one senior off this year's team, though it's an important one in five-year starter Lydia Beare. However, the rest of the Golden Tornadoes are scheduled to return and will try to build upon the improved season the women put forth this year.
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).
