An early goal by rookie Andrea Witte and a solid defensive effort sent the Denison women's soccer team to its first win of the season, a 1-0 victory over regional rival Otterbein on Wednesday at Barclay-Thomsen Field.

The Big Red offense went on display quickly with a goal inside the first two and a half minutes of play.  Sophomore defender Gen Eng-Surowiec sent a cross from the left side that found the head of a Cardinal player.  However, the clear attempt failed to leave the box and was picked up Witte.  The rookie settled the ball at the penalty dot and gunned a shot into the upper right 90 to put DU on top 1-0 at 2:13.

That proved to be all the home team needed as the Denison defense and junior goalie Andrea Karl shutdown the high-powered Otterbein offense.  The Cardinals unloaded seven shots in the opening 45 minutes, one of which was stopped by Karl.  Otterbein also earned eight corner kicks in the first period.

In the second half, the Cards pushed the tempo and looked to even the match in the 57th minute.  Megan McCabe came streaking down the right side of the field and sent a shot to the far post.  However, a diving Karl got just enough of the ball to push it offline.  Otterbein received three-straight corner kicks off the initial save, but only managed one shot that was blocked by DU.

In the 78th minute, Karl turned aside an attempt by Molly Newhouse.  With roughly 10 minutes to play, the Cardinals were granted a free kick along the end line after a Big Red foul.  Alex Ancona sent a cross towards the front of the net , but senior captain Alicia Blake was right there to head the ball out of danger.  Otterbein's final push for the game-tying goal came with less than 10 seconds following another Denison foul.  Emily Bates unloaded a shot through a sea of people that trickled just wide of the net as time expired.

The Cardinals held a 13-6 edge in shots and an 11-2 advantage in corner kicks.  The Big Red committed 13 fouls compared to seven by Otterbein.  Witte paced the DU attack with four shots and her first-collegiate goal, while Newhouse and McCabe logged three and two shots, respectively, for the Cards.

Karl picked up her first win of the season and the 20th shutout of her career after posting three stops in 90 minutes.  Dana Strimbu suffered her first loss of the year after allowing the lone goal of the game.

Denison improves to 1-4 on the year, while Otterbein falls to 4-2.  The Big Red returns to action Saturday when they open North Coast Athletic Conference play at DePauw.  Match time is slated for 12 p.m.