BEAVER FALLS, Pa. – The Geneva College baseball team wrapped up its season on a cold and damp Saturday afternoon at home against visiting Allegheny, and the Gators took both games by scores of 15-8 and 12-8. The Golden Tornadoes finish their season with a 17-19 overall record.
Junior starting pitcher Jason Triscila struggled with his command early in the game one, and the Gators took advantage by scoring four times through the first three innings, on just two singles.
The Golden Tornadoes responded in the bottom of the third, though, with junior Michael Twigg driving one over the left-field fence for a two-run home run. Later in the inning, freshman Logan Middendorf brough home freshman Luke Troxell with a sacrifice fly to bring Geneva within 4-3.
Allegheny took control of the game in the following three innings, though, scoring 11 times, helped along by multiple Geneva defensive miscues.
The Golden Tornadoes did add five runs is the sixth and seventh innings. Senior Kirk Bearjar, juniors Noah Michal and Hank Fedullo, and sophomore Simon Wehr all produced RBIs during that stretch, but Allegheny eventually closed out the victory, 15-8.
Wehr led the offense, reaching base all four times with two hits and two walks, scoring once and driving in another. Twigg provided the biggest highlight with his long home run. Senior Jake McFarland provided the Golden Tornadoes with some strong work out of the bullpen, pitching 3.2 innings while giving up just one hit and no runs.
In game two, Allegheny jumped on senior starter Eric Keaton early, scoring five times in the top of the first inning. Geneva did respond with two runs in the bottom of the frame on an RBI-double by Bearjar and an RBI-single by junior Bradley McGuire.
The Allegheny offense continued to put up runs, though, adding single runs in the second and third innings and two more runs in the fourth.
Geneva's offense kept battling, though, scoring twice in the third on RBIs from Twigg and junior Jonathan Dysinger, and another run in the fourth on an RBI-single from sophomore Colin McCrone.
The Golden Tornadoes then scored three times in the bottom of the fifth on a sacrifice fly from Bearjar, another RBI-single from McGuire and a Gator error. That brought Geneva within one run, 9-8.
That was as close as the Golden Tornadoes could get, though. Allegheny scored three times in the top of the eighth to create some more distance, and Geneva couldn't rally any further in falling 12-8.
McGuire and McCrone led the offense in game two, each contributing two hits. Bearjar and McGuire each drove in two runs, while freshman Matthew Kee and sophomore James Zugai each scored twice.
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).
