MEADVILLE, Pa. - It was a wild ride for the Geneva College men's basketball team on Saturday afternoon, but the Golden Tornadoes managed to nab their tenth straight victory in overtime, 72-67, against the Allegheny College Gators despite having their worst shooting performance of the season. Geneva's record is boosted to 18-2 overall, 14-1 in the Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC), while Allegheny now sits at 5-14 overall, 3-11 in conference play.
The first half began well for the Golden Tornadoes, with junior Payton Triplett scoring the first four points of the game. Then followed a three-pointer from sophomore Jonathan Bertovich, and Geneva quickly found itself up 7-0 early on. The Gators came out of a timeout with a 9-0 run of their own, taking the lead. A 6-0 run from junior Mark Rachic, followed by some free throws from Triplett, put Geneva back in front, 17-11.
Things went back and forth for a little while, but Geneva couldn't create any separation from the Gators due to an abnormal inaccuracy from behind the arc. The GTs shot just 7.7% from the three-point line over the course of the half, going 1-13. Triplett kept them in the game with eight first-half points, but the Golden Tornadoes finished out the first 20 minutes still trailing 29-26.
Geneva's shooting woes continued to start the second half, as the GTs went 0-of-6 from the field in the first three minutes. However, Allegheny began to struggle shooting as well, and despite Geneva's lack of offense, the Golden Tornadoes were able to stay within striking distance. Senior Ryan Rachic hit a three-pointer and a layup to calm things down for Geneva, but a quick 7-2 run for the Gators put them up nine, 45-36, with 11 minutes to play, their largest lead of the game.
Back-to-back triples from Ryan Rachic and Bertovich got Geneva going offensively and cut the deficit to three. However, Allegheny continued to hold onto a slim advantage, and despite a couple more three-pointers from Triplett, Geneva could not draw even.
Things got interesting in the final three minutes of regulation. A deep shot from Allegheny's James Sitter put the Gators up seven with 2:21 to play, a lead that seemed at the time to be insurmountable. Geneva tightened up defensively and a made free throw, and another three-ball from Ryan Rachic made it a one-possession game. Allegheny's Luke Barker made a contested layup with 23 seconds to play to make the score 63-58, but senior Isaac Massie had a nice drive and score to bring Geneva within three points with 9 seconds left. Allegheny couldn't inbound the ball in time and the ball was given back to Geneva, but junior Trevor Tipton couldn't connect on a three-pointer falling away from the basket. The Gators got the ball back and were fouled, but a missed free throw on the one-and-one opportunity gave Geneva one last chance to score. As time expired, Trevor Tipton found himself with the ball once again and tossed up a triple from just in front of the Geneva bench, and his teammates erupted as they saw the ball fall through the nylon to send the game to overtime.
The Golden Tornadoes dominated Allegheny in the five-minute overtime right from the get-go, with a Bertovich steal resulting in free throws on the other end for Massie to put Geneva in the lead. The teams went back-and-forth for a few minutes, and then a three-point make from Bertovich gave the GTs a five-point lead with 1:44 to play, a lead they would not relinquish. When the final buzzer sounded, Geneva had come away with an extremely improbable 72-67 victory to push its winning streak to ten straight games.
Geneva took the victory despite a season-worst night shooting, as they shot just 34% from the field. Payton Triplett led the team scoring-wise with 16 points, and Ryan Rachic posted a nice double-double, with 12 points and 13 rebounds. Bertovich and Massie each had 11 points, and Tipton scored ten as well. Bertovich also had four steals, including two crucial ones in overtime.
"That was probably our worst offensive game in a couple of years, and yet we still found a way to prevail," said Head Coach Jeff Santarsiero. "We just could never get into a flow. We were doing things we've never done all year, missing easy, open looks. But we got a couple breaks late, and then Trevor hit the shot to send us to overtime. Once we got to overtime, we felt pretty good about our chances. When you play a long season, you're going to have some rough games, but the good teams find a way to win despite that, and we did that today."
Geneva is at home twice next week, playing Waynesburg on Wednesday and Saint Vincent on Saturday. Against Waynesburg, the GTs will look to make it 11 straight wins for the first time since the 1995-96 season.
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).
