GROVE CITY, PA - A 12-game losing streak was bound to end when the Geneva College football team visited Grove City. The host Wolverines were on a 12-game overall losing streak while the visiting Golden Tornadoes entered with a 12-game road losing streak.
It wasn’t easy for Geneva to end its road woes, though, as the Golden Tornadoes jumped ahead 13-0 in the first quarter but saw the lead dwindle and disappear in the third quarter. Geneva took the lead for good in the fourth quarter on the second touchdown run of the day by freshman quarterback Javid Ellis (Port St. Lucie, FL/Saint Lucie West Centennial).
Ellis is filling the scoring role left by the graduation of H-back/quarterback Rocco Colavecchia, Geneva’s single-season and career scoring leader, in 2013. Ellis (6-1, 220) now has three touchdowns in two games, but has not completed a pass.
Ellis scored Geneva’s first touchdown in the first quarter and another freshman – Trewon Marshall (Leetsdale, PA/Quaker Valley) caught a 55-yard pass from sophomore Aaron Channing (Horsham, PA.Hatboro-Horsham) to give Geneva the 13-0 lead.
The end of the streak wasn’t going to come easily, though. Grove City answered with a pair of touchdowns, set up by a bad punt snap and a blocked punt but Geneva retained the lead at halftime, 15-13, because of a blocked extra point that sophomore Nate Cannon (Palm Beach Gardens, FL/Kings Academy) returned to the end zone for two Geneva points.
In the third quarter, Grove City took the lead on a 21-yard field goal by Payton Carlucci. But a Jon Fiscus (Freedom, PA/Freedom) interception set up the final scoring drive, a 65-yard, nine-play drive with Ellis finishing the task.
Fiscus finished the game with two interceptions and three other Geneva players recorded one as the Golden Tornadoes forced five turnovers. Also recording interceptions were Cannon, Jimmy Quinlan (Brookfield, OH/Brookfield), and Thomas Benyo (Berlin Center, OH/Western Reserve).
Offensively, Geneva was led by senior Dylan Jones (New Castle, PA/Laurel) with 106 yards rushing and Channing passed for 142.
Now 1-1, Geneva returns home Saturday for a 7 p.m. game against Waynesburg at Reeves Field.
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