Allegheny College maintained the second spot in the North Coast Athletic Conference standings with a 56-53 victory over Denison on Saturday afternoon in Granville.

After falling into an early hole, the Big Red went ahead 15-6 with 12:25 left in the opening period thanks to a 13-2 run.  The nine-point lead was the largest of the game for DU.  The Gators rallied from the deficit and took a two-point lead late in the half.  However, Jane Windler knocked down a jumper in the paint to tie the game at 28-28 as the two squads entered the locker room.

The second 20 minutes saw four ties and four lead changes between the two teams.  Tied at 46-46, a pair of threes by Erica Restich fueled a 6-2 Allegheny run that put the Gators on top by four.  Kyli Parker knocked down a jumper with 1:40 to play to trim the margin to 54-53, but Restich knocked down two free throws over the final 92 seconds to secure the win.

Denison shot 32 percent (20-for-63) from the field, while Allegheny hit 43 percent (17-for-40) from the floor, including a 5-for-9 (56 percent) performance from behind the arc.  The Big Red held a slim 35-33 edge on the glass, and committed just 12 turnovers compared to 20 by the Gators.

Parker paced the Big Red with a career-high 17 points off the bench.  The junior went 5-for-10 from the field, including 3 three-pointers, and converted all four attempts at the charity stripe in 24 minutes.  Junior point guard Serafina Nuzzo chipped in 10 points, six assists and four steals.

Daryl Ford led all scorers with 19 points on 4-of-7 from the floor and a perfect 11-for-11 from the foul line.  Ford also grabbed a game-high eight boards and dished out four assists.  Restich added 16 points and three steals, while Heidi Goeller chipped in 12 tallies

DU falls to 11-6 overall and 4-4 in the NCAC, while Allegheny improves to 12-5 and 7-1 in league play.  Denison returns to action on Wednesday when they travel to Oberlin for a 6 p.m. tip-off.