Denison picked up two key North Coast Athletic Conference victories over rival Ohio Wesleyan on Senior Day in Granville. The Big Red rallied to win game one 6-5, and recorded a 9-1 victory in six innings in game two.

DU trailed the Battling Bishops 5-3 heading into the bottom half of the fifth inning in the opener.  Junior Rachel Laughlin was hit by a pitch to lead off the frame, while the game-tying run, Jess Robertson, reached via free pass.  Junior Gretchen Staubach cut the deficit to one with a double down the left field line that scored Laughlin.  Junior pitcher Rebecca Dyer helped her own cause with a single to center field that scored Robertson, tying the contest at 5-5.  With one down and the go-ahead run 60 feet away from the dish, senior Rosie Glaser drove in Staubach on a sacrifice fly to right field.

Now pitching with the lead, Dyer struck out the side in order in the sixth.  In the seventh, the junior induced a groundout to short before giving up an infield single to Stefanie Rieder.  After surrendering the base knock, Dyer fanned both Brooke Warner and Brooke Nethers to nail down the victory.

The Battling Bishops grabbed an early 3-0 lead when Sarah Flint blasted a three-run home run over the left field wall in the first.  Denison shrunk the deficit to 3-1 in the third inning when Laughlin's infield single scored Glaser.  In the fourth frame, a double to left center by sophomore Julie Rooney plated Flaser and Dyer, tying the contest at 3-3.  However, an RBI triple from Erica Bryan and a one-run double from Morgan Hall regained the lead for OWU before the Big Red's fifth-inning onslaught.

Dyer scattered eight hits, allowed five runs and struck out 11 en route to her seventh win of the season.  In addition, the junior also went 3-for-3 at the plate with an RBI and a run scored.  Rooney also helped the offense with a double and two RBIs.  Laughlin and Staubach each drove in and scored a run, while Glaser had an RBI and touched the plate twice.

In game two, Ohio Wesleyan once again jumped out to an early lead thanks to an RBI single from Chelsea Denman.  However, that was all the offense the Bishops could muster as junior hurler Kelsey Hager held OWU to just three hits and allowed only six to reach base in six innings of work.  Hager struck out two and allowed one run inside the circle.  She also retired the final eight batters she faced.

Hager received all the run support she needed from her offense as DU put up nine runs over the final four frames.  With the bases loaded and one out in the third, Laughlin belted a double to left center that scored Meghan Edwards, Emily Lipsitz and Rooney.  The junior eventually came around to score on a ground ball by Dyer.  The Big Red added two more in the fourth thanks to an RBI double by Laughlin and a base hit by Robertson.

Denison ended the game with a three spot in the sixth inning.  A Lipsitz single and a walk to Edwards forced OWU to make their third pitching change of the game.  Laughlin greeted the new hurler with a single that loaded the bases with no outs.  With Robertson at the dish, a wild pitch allowed all the runners to move up 60 feet, effectively scoring Lipsitz from third.  Robertson laced a single through the left side that knocked in Edwards.  Staubach delivered the final blow with a ground out to the pitcher that scored Laughlin.

The top five spots in the DU batter hit .625 (10-for-16) with six RBIs and nine runs in the nightcap.  Laughlin was 3-for-3 with two doubles, four RBIs and three runs, while Robertson drove in two more.  Edwards logged a hit and crossed the dish three times, while Lipsitz and Rooney each posted two hits and combined for three runs.

The Big Red improves to 14-10 overall and 5-3 in the NCAC, while OWU falls to 10-12 and 3-5 in the conference.  Denison returns to action tomorrow when they travel to Bexley, Ohio for a doubleheader against Capital University.  Game one is scheduled to begin at 1 p.m.

NOTE: Prior to Saturday's doubleheader, the Denison softball team honored the members of its senior class: (L-R) student manager Laura Saenz, Jess Robertson, Rosie Glaser and Kelly Cunningham.