WAYNESBURG, PA– Geneva senior forward Nate Rusyn was the hero for Geneva on Wednesday night. Rusyn had the game winning tip in for the Golden Tornadoes with three seconds left , and Geneva [10-10 6-5]  escaped the Rudy Marisa Fieldhouse with a 65-63 victory for its fifth consecutive win. Rusyn was happy he was in the right place at the right time. 

“Our coaches just said, no matter what happens, whether or not you hit guys on that screen just go back up for that rebound and try and get a tip in,” Rusyn said. “It just happened to fall to me and I’m glad I made it.” 

Waynesburg coach Tim Fusina said what happened on the defensive end was straight forward. 

“[We wanted to force] a missed shot and block out,” Fusina said. “We didn’t block out.”

It looked like Geneva was going to pull away with a victory when they led 63-56 with 1:45 remaining in the game. Waynesburg [4-17, 4-8] went on a 7-0 run which was highlighted by a game-tying three-pointer from senior guard Frank Bozicevic with 36 seconds left. 

“It was big,” Bozicevic said. “I thought we were fighting the whole time.  I feel like [the deficit was] down to five then down to eight then down three then we lost it again. So, I think it was a relief like we needed that one.”

The Jackets came out firing out of the gates, leading 25-19 with a little fewer than seven minutes to play in the first half. Geneva fought back, however and took a 33-32 lead into the break. The two teams fought through a back-and-forth second half that culminated in Rusyn’s put back. 

Despite the loss, Fusina appreciated the effort his men showed. 

“We have high character people,” Fusina said. “They continue to work hard. They do a great job every day, they put up with a lot of adversity. That’s why they came back because they don’t stop, they don’t give up on each other.”

Other leading scorers for Waynesburg were Ryan Felberg with 16 points and Isaiah Alonzo with 14.  For Geneva, Matt Veynovich and Presidents’ Athletic Conference Player of the Year candidate Ethan Moose each had 15 points, and Rusyn added 10.

Waynesburg has lost five straight, and with an off day Saturday, play at W&J Wednesday.  Bozicevic said it’s important to stay fresh in an effort to break this losing skid.

“The best thing is getting in the gym again, getting shots up,” Bozicevic said. “I think having Saturday off is a big key for getting rest and healing up.”

Waynesburg’s next game is at 8 p.m. when it journey’s to battle the Washington & Jefferson Presidents.