WASHINGTON, Pa. – In Geneva's first doubleheader of Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) play, the GTs were swept by reigning PAC champs Washington and Jefferson College, losing game one 10-2 before dropping the second contest 17-3. The Golden Tornadoes entered the matchup down a couple of their normal starters, and they struggled all afternoon to get anything going at the plate. The men's now hold a 9-5 overall record, 0-2 in the PAC, while the Presidents move up to 10-4, 2-0 in PAC play.
W&J punched in three runs in the bottom of the first inning of game one to nab a lead right from the beginning. Another President run in the bottom of the second inning made the score 4-0, and there it would stay through the next three frames as Geneva struggled to get anything going at the plate.
Finally, in the top of the sixth, the Golden Tornadoes were able to put some runs on the board. Junior
Aaron Babu led off the inning by drawing a walk, and he came home on the next play thanks to an opposite-field home run from junior
Kirk Bearjar on the next at-bat. Those two runs cut Geneva's deficit in half, and the men trailed 4-2 halfway through the inning.
Unfortunately, the Presidents struck back with six runs of their own in the bottom of the sixth frame, putting them squarely in front over halfway through the game. A double from Babu in the eighth inning followed by a Bearjar single gave the GTs runners at first and third with only one out, but they could not bring anyone home and wound up dropping the contest 10-2.
Junior
Eric Keaton got the start for Geneva, pitching 5.0 innings and allowing four runs, three earned, while striking out three. Sophomore
Cayden Cribbs was a highlight for the pitching staff, as he entered the game in the seventh inning and pitched 2.0 innings of scoreless baseball. At the plate, Bearjar went 2-for-4 with a home run and two RBIs, and Babu was 2-for-3 in game one.
Game two also started off with lots of Presidents runs, with the host team sending nine runners across home plate in the first inning. Again, the Golden Tornadoes struggled to put men on base, until finally they got some offense going in the sixth inning. After the first two Geneva batters walked, senior
Harrison Burns singled to load up the bases with nobody out. Freshmen
Mikey Crandall and
Christopher Jackson walked to bring in two runs, and then with two outs sophomore
Noah Michal ran out an infield hit for an RBI-single. That's where the scoring ended, and the men lost game two 17-3.
Freshman
Jack Barrett got the start for Geneva, his second of the season. Sophomore
Grant LaRoche was the only Geneva pitcher to not allow a run, pitching a scoreless final inning.
The GTs are on the road again next week, heading to Saint Vincent on Tuesday, March 25
th, for another PAC doubleheader with the Bearcats at 1:00 p.m. After that, they return to Beaver Falls for their home opener against Grove City the following Saturday.
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).
