The 11th-ranked Denison University women's basketball team logged their 19th consecutive victory of the season thanks to a 65-49 win at Hiram College on Saturday afternoon from Price Gymnasium.  With the win, the Big Red improve to 19-0 overall and 8-0 in the North Coast Athletic Conference.

The two squads struggle from the floor in the opening nine minutes of the game going a combined 7-for-33 (21 percent) from the field.  Ahead 15-14 midway through the opening half, senior Shaina Kaiser (Ostrander, Ohio/Buckeye Valley) knocked down a pair of free throws to extended the Big Red lead back to three.  Those two foul shots sparked a 7-0 run that featured a pair of free throws by sophomore point guard Serafina Nuzzo (Western Springs, Ill./Fenwick) and a triple by Nicole Coggins (Mesa, Ariz./Corona Del Sol).

The Terriers answered with a jumper by Amy Geisman and a Jessica Cown 3-pointer to trim the deficit back to three (22-19).  However, a 10-2 half-ending run allowed DU to enter the locker room with a 32-22 advantage.  Kaiser and junior Christina Myers (Pataskala, Ohio/Watkins Memorial) highlighted the final Denison push with four points apiece.

The Big Red opened the second half the same way they closed the previous period, with a 10-2 run.  The DU run helped the visiting team to an 18-point lead (42-24), their largest of the game.

Hiram rattled off seven unanswered tallies to make it an 11-point contest, but junior Jessica Grzybowski (Parma, Ohio/Padua Franciscan) found Coggins for a 3-pointer to break up the Terrier run.  Trailing by 58-45, Hiram's Calysia Smyers hit a trey with 5:06 to cut the deficit to 10.  On the ensuing Denison possession, Nuzzo answered with a triple of her own to push the Big Red lead back to 13.

After Tiffany Shields split a pair from the charity stripe to shrink the margin to 61-49, Kaiser and fellow senior Haley Dahlgard (Walnut Creek, Calif./Northgate) scored on back-to-back possessions to secure DU's 16-point victory.

Denison shot 40 percent from the floor, while Hiram struggled from the field shooting just 29 percent.  The Big Red also held a 48-33 edge on the glass, and scored 17 second-chance points compared to just four by the Terriers.

Coggins led all scorers with 18 points on 8-of-11 from the field and 2-of-3 from long distance.  Kaiser logged her ninth-career double-double with 14 points and a career-high 13 rebounds in 39 minutes of action.  Myers finished the day with 15 points and six rebounds.

Smyers paced Hiram with 10 points, while Cowan added nine tallies.  Chelsea Kovach and Kelsey Durichko each grabbed six rebounds.

The Big Red (19-0, 8-0 NCAC) return to action on Saturday when they host NCAC rival Ohio Wesleyan University on Wednesday (Feb. 2).  Tip-off from Livingston Gymnasium is scheduled for 6 p.m.  A live video stream of Wednesday's men's and women's doubleheader will be provided by the Denison Sports Network.