Box Score Denison's seven-member senior class will go down as one of the winningest groups in school history. Playing in their final regular season home match of their career's on Saturday the Big Red cruised to an 8-0 win over Oberlin College. The win secured a share of the 2013 North Coast Athletic Conference Championship. That marks the ninth NCAC Field Hockey Championship in school history.
Denison held a 2-0 lead at the intermission after unassisted goals by Tonie Michaels and Lizzy Pellicane. In the second half DU would explode for six goals as Michaels got things going two minutes into the period with her third goal of the campaign off a feed from Molly Chapman.
In the 45th minute of play Michaels would hit Alex B. Berman on a one-timer from 10-yards out. Just four minutes later, Michaels would feed Katie McMahon for her 16th goal of the season, putting DU up 5-0 with 21 minutes to play.
In the 52nd minute Denison scored one of its strangest goals of 2013 when McMahon blasted a shot that rose five feet off the ground. The rising blast nicked Alex B. Berman's stick who was in the striking circle. Off the deflection the ball caromed into the corner of the cage. The officials had a lengthy discussion to determine if the ball actually hit Berman's stick. After the conference it was determined that the Berman did make contact and Denison went up 6-0.
Over the last six minutes, DU would score two more as Abby Martone notched her second goal of the season off an assist by Elsie Humes. The final came from Pellicane as she knocked in a loose ball in front of the cage in the 66th minute.
Denison outshot Oberlin 27-5. Laura Campbell finished with two saves for Denison while Oberlin's Carmen Azevedo finished with seven saves for the Yeowomen.
Denison will be the No. 2 seed in the upcoming NCAC Tournament due to the conference's tiebreaker policy. They will host No. 3 seed, Kenyon on Wednesday (Nov. 6) at 3 p.m. In the other semifinal match, top-seeded DePauw will host No. 4 seed, Wooster at 2 p.m.
NOTE: Denison's senior class that is comprised of Taylor Bacon, Alex B. Berman, Laura Campbell, Mia Day, Karla Dixon, Katie McMahon, and Tonie Michaels have won 58 matches and have gone 50-9 over the last three seasons. This is the groups second NCAC Championship. Only six teams in NCAA Division III field hockey have fewer losses that Denison since the start of the 2011 season.
