WINONA LAKE, Ind. – The #4-seed Geneva College men's basketball team put together an impressive showing against #5-seed Sterling (KS) College on Wednesday night in the National Christian College Athletic Association (NCCAA) Quarterfinals, hosted at Grace College, leading almost the entire game in a 75-63 victory.  The Golden Tornadoes improved to 18-9 on the season and advance to take on #1-seed Bethel (IN) University tomorrow night in the NCCAA Semifinals.  Bethel defeated #8-seed Ecclesia College 79-64.
 
Neither team could generate much offense early on, as both teams struggled to find the range.  Sophomore Trevor Tipton got Geneva on the board with a three-pointer, though, a sign of things to come.  Junior Ryan Rachic followed with a layup.  Eight minutes into the game, a layup from junior Payton Triplett increased the Geneva advantage to 11-4 as Sterling hit just one of their first ten shots from the floor.
 
Over the next six minutes, though, the Warriors answered with a 13-5 run to take a brief 17-16 edge, but it didn't last long.  Fifteen seconds later a layup from Tipton gave Geneva the lead right back, and it would kick-start a huge run to finish the half.
 
Rachic followed with a layup, senior Lyle Tipton hit back-to-back layups and senior Isaac Massie followed with a bucket to make it ten straight Geneva points.  Trevor Tipton then drained another three-pointer, and Lyle Tipton closed the half with two free throws to give the Golden Tornadoes a 31-17 lead at the break.  Geneva scored the final 15 points of the half.
 
The halftime break didn't slow the Geneva offense down.  Rachic hit an early jumper, followed by another three-pointer by Trevor Tipton, finishing off a 20-point run over the final six minutes of the first half and the first two minutes of the second half. 
 
The Golden Tornadoes never let Sterling back into the game over the final 18 minutes.  Their lead never dipped below 17 points until the final minutes of the game.  Geneva's offense never took its foot of the gas, excelling particularly from long range, with Trevor and Lyle Tipton each knocking down multiple three-pointers in the second half.  Two free throws from Lyle Tipton midway through the half gave Geneva a 54-32 lead, its biggest of the game, and the Golden Tornadoes easily closed out the win, 75-63.
 
Trevor Tipton led the team with 20 points, including six three-pointers.  Lyle Tipton and Isaac Massie each added 16 points.  Ryan Rachic also reached double figures with ten points, while sophomore Mark Rachic contributed seven points and seven rebounds. 
 
As a team Geneva shot 27-of-63 (43%) from the floor, 10-of-31 (32%) from long range.  The Golden Tornadoes also went a perfect 11-of-11 from the foul line.  Geneva also held its own on the boards, with the bigger Warriors holding a slim 40-37 edge in rebounds.
 
"It took us a little while to get going, but once we did, I thought we played really well," said Head Coach Jeff Santarsiero.  "We did a great job playing to our scouting report, especially defensively.  Trevor carried us early on, and then I thought we were really good in the second half both offensively and defensively."
 
"They are a big, talented and athletic team that I knew could give us problems, and I felt like we controlled the game from the tip," Coach Santarsiero added.  "I'm really proud of the way our guys competed tonight, but we don't have much time to celebrate.  We're now going to face a really good Bethel team tomorrow night, so we've got a quick turnaround to get ready for them.  But this was a great start to the weekend and ensures we'll be playing on Saturday."
 
Geneva will play the late game again tomorrow tonight, taking on the top seed Bethel at 8:45 p.m.  A win would put the Golden Tornadoes in the championship game, slated for 5:00 p.m. on Saturday.  A loss would drop Geneva into the third-place game on Saturday at 12:00 p.m.


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).