BEAVER FALLS, Pa. (Oct. 24) – The Waynesburg University women's soccer team traveled to Geneva on Tuesday with a spot in the Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) tournament on the line. The Yellow Jackets unleashed its young, potent offense on the Golden Tornadoes and punched their ticket to the postseason with a 5-2 victory.
 
With the win, Waynesburg (8-6-2, 5-3-2) moved into fifth place in the conference standings. The top six teams in the league advance into the upcoming tournament, which gets underway on Saturday. The Jackets last made the PAC postseason in 2021.
 
The Jackets, who finish the regular season ranked second in the PAC in goals scored per game (3.188), opened the scoring just 3:19 into the contest. Sophomore Reagan Mittendorf (Bluffton, Ohio / Bluffton) did the honors after taking a pass from freshman Julz Mohrbacher (Freedom, Pa. / Freedom) and finding the back of the net.
 
Waynesburg doubled its advantage in the ninth minute when Mohrbacher buried her team-leading 12^th of the season. Yet another talented freshman, Hailey Gilchrest (Hanover, Va. / Hanover) set up the score.
 
Just 15 seconds later, Geneva (5-9-2, 4-5-1) got on the board to cut the Jacket advantage in half. However, Gilchrest had an answer, which wound up being the game-winning score for the visitors. Midway through the 17^th minute, the first-year forward posted her second of the season to rebuild her team's two-goal edge. By the time halftime came around, Waynesburg found itself ahead 3-1.
 
Gilchrest logged her first multi-goal game as a Yellow Jacket when she made the score 4-1 late in the 48^th minute. Waynesburg's advantage swelled to 5-1 in the 68^th minute, when senior Kate James (Silver Spring, Md. / St. John's College H.S.) added another entry to a fantastic final season in Orange and Black with her sixth goal of the season. Along with her PAC-leading 10 assists, James currently boasts 22 points, good for ninth in the league.
 
Geneva scored its final goal of the 2023 season in the 76^th minute, but that was as close as it came to completing a comeback and getting into the playoffs.
 
The Yellow Jackets' offensive efficiency proved to be the difference, as the home team outshot Waynesburg 19-16. However, the Jackets edged the GT's 8-6 in shots on goal.
 
Freshman Alexus Greenlief (Chester, W.Va. / Oak Glen) made a successful return to the goalie box after missing four-plus games due to injury. Greenlief made four saves over 90 minutes of play.
 
The Jackets open PAC tournament play on Saturday with a quarterfinal contest at Washington & Jefferson in a true clash of styles. Waynesburg's number two-ranked scoring offense faces a President defense, which has allowed the second-fewest goals per game in the league (0.69).
 
The two teams played to a 2-2 draw back on Oct. 4, when the Jackets doubled up the Presidents in shots on goal (16-8). Waynesburg and W&J also met in the PAC playoffs in 2021, with the Red and Black edging the Orange and Black 1-0 in double overtime.