BEAVER FALLS, Pa. – The Geneva baseball team celebrated Senior Day on Saturday afternoon by sweeping Waynesburg University in a Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) doubleheader. The Golden Tornadoes took game one 9-5 before emerging victorious in a 13-12 nailbiter in game two. Geneva's overall record is back even at 16-16 after the sweep, and they stand at 8-12 in PAC play heading into the final week of the regular season.
Prior to game one, head coach
Alan Sumner spent a few minutes recognizing each of Geneva's six seniors for their commitment and dedication to the program.
Kirk Bearjar,
Ethan Blair,
Ryan Conover,
Eric Keaton,
Jake McFarland, and
Anthony Snyder were each acknowledged, and the festivities closed with the parents of each player throwing a ceremonial first pitch to their sons.
Waynesburg struck first with a run in the top of inning two, but the men answered with two of their own in the bottom of the frame. With two outs, junior
Bradley McGuire and sophomores
Simon Wehr and
Colin McCrone hit three singles in a row to plate a run, and then Wehr scored on a wild pitch to give Geneva the lead.
Junior
Jason Triscila was the game one starter for the Golden Tornadoes and was efficient on the mound, retiring all six batters he faced over the next couple of innings. Bearjar tripled and came in to score in the third frame, and then junior
Michael Twigg and sophomore
Marco Chenet each registered RBIs in the fourth to put Geneva ahead 5-1.
Triscila continued to pitch well, keeping the Yellow Jackets at bay. The Golden Tornadoes scored two runs on a wild pitch in the sixth inning, and then two more via a Bearjar home run in the eighth frame, carrying through till the end to secure a 9-5 victory.
After pitching 7.0 innings and striking out six batters, Triscila earned the win to move to 3-5 on the year. Offensively, the GTs were led by Bearjar, who went 2-for-5 with his home run and two RBIs. McGuire, Wehr, and McCrone all batted well at the bottom of the lineup, getting two hits each.
Geneva opened with four runs in the first inning of game two, getting four consecutive base hits at one point in the frame to go in front 4-1 early on. Two more runs in the second inning and another in the third pushed that advantage to 7-3, and then a bases-loaded double off the bat of sophomore
Mason Smith sent the men way in front, 10-4, through four innings of play.
Waynesburg battled back, however, scoring five times in the sixth inning after Geneva committed a few costly errors. With the score knotted at 10-all, the men rose to the occasion, with sophomore
James Zugai poking a clutch single through the left side of the infield in the seventh inning to score Twigg from second base. In the next at-bat, McGuire launched a ball to deep left field that appeared to have been caught, but then the Yellow Jacket fielder reached down to pick the ball up off the ground and McGuire ran to second base for a two-RBI double. That was the game-changing play, as relievers
Jake Buyajian and
Kaden Peeples closed out the day to ensure a 13-12 victory for Geneva.
Senior
Ethan Blair earned the win in relief, allowing zero earned runs through 1.2 innings. Buyajian pitched an impressive eighth inning, keeping the visitors off the scoreboard, before Peeples finished out the game with the save. McGuire was the best player at the plate for Geneva, going 3-for-5 with two doubles, three RBIs, and two runs. Smith finished with four RBIs while Twigg, Chenet, Bearjar, Zugai, and freshman
Luke Troxell each recorded multiple hits.
Geneva's next contest is a non-conference doubleheader with Hilbert next Tuesday, April 28. Game one will begin at 1:00 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).
