The Denison defense held strong on three first half goal line stands while the DU offense played keep away with the football in the second half, dominating time of possession, en route to an impressive 21-6 victory over Ohio Wesleyan University from Deeds Field-Piper Stadium.

The victory was the first in the collegiate coaching career of new head coach Jack Hatem.  It also snapped a 10-game losing streak to the Battling Bishops that dated back to 1996.

On Ohio Wesleyan's second possession of the game freshman quarterback Mason Espinosa drove his team deep into Big Red territory.  On second down from the Denison 2-yard line, junior linebacker Adam Frudden (Mahtomedi, Minn./Mounds Park Academy) came off the edge and dropped Espinosa for a loss of 1.  On third down all the Bishops could muster was one yard leaving them with a decision to make on 4th-and-2.  Espisona took the snap from shotgun and found Chris Marshall in the flat but Frudden and Nick Weiss (Cincinnati, Ohio/Anderson) stuffed Marshall just inches short of the goal line.

After failing to move the ball out of the shadows of their own goal post, Ohio Wesleyan would take over possession on the DU 26-yard line after a 26-yard punt from deep in their own end zone.  Five plays later OWU would be back knocking on the door from the Denison 2-yard line.  Three consecutive stops by the Big Red defense would result in a Nick Chilkov field goal from 20-yards out, giving the Bishops a 3-0 lead with 11 minutes left in the second quarter.

On the ensuing kickoff, sophomore Sam Fioroni (Clarkston, Mich./Orchard Lake St. Mary's) gave Denison the field position they had lacked all afternoon after a 38-yard kickoff return that got the Big Red into OWU territory at the 45-yard line.  After a 14-yard gain by Fioroni on the first play of the drive, sophomore quarterback Max Paulus (Massillon, Ohio/Jackson) would find senior tight end Jake Shafer (Columbus, Ohio/Thomas Worthington) down the seam for a 17-yard gain on 3rd and 10. Three plays later Fioroni would finish things off with Denion's first touchdown of the season.

After an interception on their next possession set up Ohio Wesleyan with excellent field position once again, the defense answered the call on 1st and Goal from the seven when Alex Sycher (Columbus, Ohio/New Albany) sacked Mason Espinosa.  Two plays later the Big Red forced OWU to kick another field goal after Pat Effinger (Pickerington, Ohio/North) and Frudden took down Espinosa. Chilkov's 22-yard field goal cut Denison's lead to 7-6 with 2:23 left in the first half.

The game's most pivotal possession would come from Denison who worked their two-minute offense to perfection while getting a little help from the OWU defense.  On 3rd and 2 from their own 48-yard line Paulus completed a 2-yard pass to Dan Crawford (Upper Arlington, Ohio/Upper Arlington) for the first down.  After the play an OWU defender was charged with a personal foul that moved the ball to the 35-yard line.  Two more completions from Paulus to Andy Carpenter (Lake Forest, Ill./Lake Forest) and Jeff Cochran (Massillon, Ohio/Jackson) would lead up to a 2nd and 8 from the 9-yard line where Paulus rolled to the right and found James Hall (Kenilworth, Ill./New Trier) who was tucked neatly in the back corner of the end zone.  Senior Kevin Schneider (Upper Arlington, Ohio/Upper Arlington) added the extra point to send DU into the second half with a 14-6 lead.

After winning the coin toss and deferring to the second half, Denison took over possession and went to work on a 12-play drive that would end in a missed field goal attempt from 33-yards.  That opening possession would repeat itself throughout the second half with the Big Red chewing up yardage and time while failing to come away with points.  OWU would notch just one first down in the third quarter and just two in the fourth quarter, on their final drive after the game had already been decided.  That translated to only seven minutes with the football for the Bishops and resulted in one of the most impressive defensive showings by a Denison football team in recent memory.

After sitting on the ball for 23 of the final 30 minutes of play, the DU offense broke through with one final scoring play when Fioroni reached paydirt from 6-yards out with 22 seconds left.

The Big Red offense finished the day with 260 yards and were led by Paulus who completed 15-of-25 passes for 172 yards and one touchdown.  Paulus's favorite target was Lucas Graham (Zanesville, Ohio/Zanesville) who caught six passes for 68 yards.  Graham also hauled in two critical third down catches to keep the chains and the clock rolling in the later stages of the game.

Crawford led all ball carriers with 58 yards off 18 carries.  Fioroni finished with 48 yards off 17 carries.  The defense was paced by Frudden who tallied 11 tackles and one pass break-up.  Weiss ended with nine tackles and 45 punt return yards. Effinger had the team's lone interception while added four tackles.

Ohio Wesleyan (0-1) was held to just 41 yards rushing off 29 attempts.  Marshall led the Bishops with 24 yards off four carries.  Espinosa was 17-of-27 for 147 yards in his first career start.  Pat Embleton was his favorite target.  He finished with five catches for 42 yards.

Denison (1-0) will return to action next Saturday (Sept. 11) when they host Earlham College at 2 p.m.