Larry Farmer (Gurnee, Ill./Warren Township) and Chris Luther (Dayton, Ohio/Oakwood) each scored 16 points, but it wasn't enough as Marietta College held off the Denison Big Red for a 57-50 victory on Sunday from Livingston Gymnasium.

It was the first game of the 2009-10 season and neither team looked in mid-season form on the offensive end.  A total of 51 fouls were called in the contest and 33 total turnovers were committed. Marietta shot just 36 percent from the field and the Big Red connected on just 28 percent of their field goal tries.

Despite their difficulty shooting the basketball, the Big Red trailed by only three points with five minutes to play after a layup by Farmer.  With just over three minutes left, Luther connected on a pair of free throws, cutting the Pioneer lead to just one point at 48-47.  On their next trip down the floor, Marietta's Trevor Halter hit the biggest shot of the day, drilling a 3-pointer from the corner, to put his team up 51-47.

Farmer finished the day 6 of 13 for 16 points and tied for the team lead in rebounds with nine.  Freshman Dimonde Hale added six points and nine rebounds for the Big Red.

Marietta got 19 points and nine rebounds from Kevin Knab while Zane Carter came off the bench to add 10 points and 10 rebounds in 20 minutes of action.

The Big Red will return to action next Saturday when they take on Goshen College in Hanover, Ind.