BEAVER FALLS, Pa. – There haven't been very many better free kicks taken over the years for the Geneva College men's soccer program than the one junior Ian Tweed hit from 30 yards away against Baldwin Wallace on Tuesday night. Tweed's long-range laser just inside the near post helped secure a 2-1 victory for the Golden Tornadoes in a game in which Geneva played some entertaining soccer. It was a deserving result for the men, who improved their record to 2-1 on the season.
An hour and a half before Tweed's heroics, it was junior Dominic Sambuco who got Geneva fans onto their feet just over two minutes into the game. Junior Darren Main sent a ball into the box that junior Kyle Lapoure ran onto, and he one-timed a well-struck cross from the baseline that was perfectly placed into Sambuco's far-post run, and Sambuco easily headed the ball into the empty net to put Geneva ahead early. It was a beautiful piece of soccer.
Geneva continued to execute its offense, linking up well and moving the ball from side to side. The Golden Tornadoes nearly scored twice more on crosses through the middle of the box that were just inches away from Geneva feet.
However, in the 31st minute, against the run of play, Baldwin Wallace took advantage of a Geneva mistake to tie the score up. A bad back pass was intercepted, allowing the Yellow Jackets to put together a quick counter that resulted in Mike Kane's equalizer, and that's where the score stayed heading into the break.
Geneva's offense continued to get into dangerous spaces in the second half, with Baldwin Wallace's goalie Sam Cipriano coming up with a couple key saves, including one off a header from senior Antonio Fiordilino that looked ticketed for the upper net, to keep the score level.
Tweed finally found a way to get Geneva the lead back, though, in the 71st minute. Freshman Ojha Ojha was taken down 30 yards from goal, giving the Golden Tornadoes a free kick. Lapoure, sophomore Wil Dunda and Tweed all lined up over the ball, and after Dunda ran over the ball without touching it, Tweed's right foot drilled a shot that Cipriano made a diving attempt for, but the ball whistled past the edges of his fingers and into the corner of the netting.
Baldwin Wallace did turn up the pressure over the final 20 minutes, generating several shots, but most were from long range and went well over the bar. The Yellow Jacket's best attempt came with five minutes remaining when a slow looping shot hit the top of the cross bar, which Geneva subsequently cleared.
Baldwin Wallace's late flurry of long-range shots gave them a 13-11 edge in shots, though the Golden Tornadoes held a 6-4 advantage in shots on goal. More telling was the fact that Geneva held an 8-0 advantage in corner kicks, indicative of the fact the Golden Tornadoes were the far more dangerous team for most of the night. Junior goalkeeper Evan Shale made three saves to earn his second win of the season.
The win gives the men two straight 2-1 victories as they head out onto the road for their first road trip of the season. The Golden Tornadoes travel to Fredonia for two games in the Blue Devil Classic, beginning with a game on Friday at 1:00 p.m. against Buffalo State. Geneva wraps up its weekend with a game against Fredonia on Saturday at 3:00 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).
