Despite leading for just 40 seconds, the eighth-ranked Denison University women's basketball was on the right side of a 62-60 score when the final horn sound.  The two-point victory over North Coast Athletic Conference rival Wittenberg University came in front of an energized crowd inside Livingston Gymnasium.  With the win, the Big Red improve to 24-0 on the year and 13-0 in the NCAC.

With 6:21 left in the second half, Ashanta Robinson knocked down a short-range jumper to push the Tiger lead to 55-45.  On Denison's ensuing possession, sophomore Kyli Parker (Batavia, Ohio/Summit Country Day) pulled down a big offensive rebound and later in the possession knocked down a wide open three to cut the deficit to seven.  After a one-and-done for Wittenberg, junior Christina Myers (Pataskala, Ohio/Watkins Memorial) hit a layup and drew the foul off an assist from senior Shaina Kaiser (Ostrander, Ohio/Buckeye Valley).  Myers converted the old-fashioned three-point play to trim the Big Red deficit to 55-51 with 5:29 on the clock.

On their next trip down the floor, the Tigers were held to just one offensive opportunity once again as sophomore point guard Serafina Nuzzo (Western Springs, Ill./Fenwick) grabbed a key defensive rebound.  On the other end, Nuzzo found senior Haley Dahlgard (Walnut Creek, Calif./Northgate) for a jumper in the paint to cut the margin to two with just over four and a half to play.  On the ensuing Tiger possession, Sarah Watson knocked down 2-of-3 free throws to extend the advantage back to four with 4:07 remaining.

Over the next 90+ seconds, the aggressive Denison defense forced three-straight Tiger turnovers to keep it a four-point affair.  Off the third takeaway, rookie Jane Windler (Columbus, Ohio/Upper Arlington) pulled down an offensive board following a Nicole Coggins (Mesa, Ariz./Corona Del Sol) miss, and converted the put back to shrink the gap to 57-55 with 2:15 remaining in regulation.

Coming out of a Wittenberg timeout, DU came up with their fourth-consecutive turnover with 1:50 to play.  Even though they came up empty on the offensive end, the Big Red forced Jaclyn Willoughby into an errant pass that gave Denison a chance to tie the game or take the lead.  After missing on their first two opportunities, an Annie-Rae Dura (Westerville, Ohio/Westerville Central) rebound kept the possession alive for the Big Red.  Off the inbound, Kaiser lobbed a pass to Myers, who just checked in for Dura.  The junior post player hit the layup to tie the game and drew a foul with 40 seconds on the clock.  Myers drained the free throw to give the Big Red their first lead of the night at 58-57.

DU played tight defense and forced the Tigers to call a premature timeout with 29.7 seconds remaining.  Trying to work down the right sideline, Coggins knocked the ball off Katherine Hueter and out of bounds to give possession back to the home team with 19 ticks on the clock.  Over the final 18 seconds, Nuzzo went 4-for-4 from the charity stripe to secure the victory.

Over the final 6:21, the Big Red held Wittenberg to 1-of-4 performance from the field and forced six Tiger turnovers.  The lone make for the visiting team was a Hueter 3-pointer with 0.7 seconds on the clock.  In addition, DU held a 9-3 advantage on the glass during that stretch.

In the opening half, Wittenberg rattled off 11-straight points to open the contest before taking a five-point lead into the locker room.

On the night, Denison shot 34 percent from the field, while the Tigers shot a 42 percent clip from the floor.    DU also shot an outstanding 93 percent (14-for-15) from the foul line.  Both teams grabbed 37 rebounds and scored 12 points off turnovers.  The Big Red had a 22-20 edge in points in the paint, notched 17 second-chance points and got 24 tallies from their bench.

Myers led all scorers with 15 points on 4-of-7 from the floor and a perfect 6-for-6 from the charity stripe.  Nuzzo added 13 tallies, while Kaiser chipped in eight points, eight rebounds and four assists.  Dura also logged a career-high four steals.

Willoughby and Watson each posted 13 points and five rebounds for Wittenberg (11-13, 6-7 NCAC), while Hueter added 12 points.  Willoughby also dished out five assists.

Denison (24-0, 13-0 NCAC) closes out the regular season on Saturday (Feb. 19) when they host conference foe Oberlin at 2 p.m.

Watch Chrstina Myer's go-ahead three-point play