CRESSON, Pa. – The Geneva College women's volleyball team earned a dramatic five-set victory at Mount Aloysius on Tuesday evening in its season opener, holding off a late Mounties' rally to win 25-12, 25-19, 20-25, 16-25, 15-13. The women improve to 1-0 on the season and start 27-year Head Coach Wendy Smith's final season off with a win.
Geneva came out firing in the first set, jumping out to an early 15-5 lead. Two kills and an ace from sophomore Amanda Mitan, and kills from senior Daphne Alexander, sophomore Rachel Baird and freshman Sarah Elkins, supplied part of the offense. Mount Aloysius never managed a comeback, and Geneva finished off the dominating first-set victory with kills from Elkins and Baird, 25-12.
Mount Aloysius jumped ahead in set two, 9-5, before Geneva strung together eight straight points to grab a 13-9 edge. Alexander had two kills and block, while junior Laura Goonewardene supplied an ace in the run. The Mounties managed to pull even twice later in the set, but with Geneva clinging to a 20-19 advantage late, the Golden Tornadoes finished the set off with five straight points to win 25-19. Senior Katie Seboe started the run with back-to-back kills, while Mitan supplied two aces, including the final point.
The Mounties, who won 20 matches last season, rallied over the next two sets, though. In the third set, with Geneva leading 15-12 after a kill from Elkins, Mount Aloysius scored the next five points, and the Mounties eventually pulled away for a 25-20 win.
In the fourth set, Geneva used four straight points midway through to grab a 16-15 lead, behind two kills from Seboe and a kill from Elkins, but Mount Aloysius scored the final ten points of the set to win 25-16 and pull even in the match at two sets apiece.
Things didn't look good for the Golden Tornadoes when Mount Aloysius carried that momentum into the fifth and final set, jumping ahead 6-2 in the race to 15 points. However, a kill from Elkins, a kill from Alexander and two aces from Mitan kickstarted a 12-3 run that pushed the women to match point, 14-9. Alexander added three more kills in the stretch. The final point didn't come easily, though. The Mounties scored the next four points to pull within 14-13 before a kill from Baird finished off the match, 15-13.
Geneva finished with a balanced attack. Alexander and Elkins led the team with ten kills apiece, while Baird and Seboe each added nine kills. Goonewardene and freshman Kyla Kephart split the setting duties, with Kephart finishing with 18 assists and Goonewardene 17 assists. Alexander and Mitan finished with a team-high four blocks each, while sophomore Ruthie Land led the team with 19 digs, freshman Vanessa Crider 14 digs and Elkins 13 digs for the Golden Tornadoes. Land and Mitan each provided six aces.
The women will return home before heading up to Elmira (N.Y.) for three matches this weekend. Geneva will play Elmira on Friday at 4:00 p.m. and Gallaudet and New England on Saturday afternoon.
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).
