Denison split Sunday's North Coast Athletic Conference doubleheader with Wabash, resulting in a series split with the Little Giants.  The Big Red recorded its first shutout win of the season in game one, 8-0, before dropping a heart-breaking 8-7 decision in 11 innings in the nightcap.

The story in game one was the absolute gem thrown by senior pitcher Tim Duxbury.  Duxbury scattered four hits and fanned four batters en route to his first-collegiate complete-game shutout.  The senior hurler used a mixture of heat and off-speed pitches to keep the Wabash hitter off balance for seven innings.  Duxbury induced nine ground outs, seven fly outs and threw over 80 percent of his pitches for strikes en route to his fourth win of the season.

Duxbury received plenty of run support throughout the contest.  DU grabbed an early 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first when a double steal attempt allowed senior Kyle Clemmenson to score from third base.  Even though Clemmenson's first-inning tally was all DU needed, the Big Red bats tacked on a pair of insurance runs in the third frame.  With runners at second and third, Clemmenson roped a double down the left line that scored Charlie Apfelbach and Jake Meegan.

Denison broke the game open in the fourth with four runs on the strength of four hits and two Wabash errors.  Junior Andrew Touhy drove in Nick Marsit with a sacrifice fly to center for the first run of the inning.  Apfelbach laced another double down the left line that plated Lowell Hall.  Senior Danny Kraus delivered the final blow of the fourth with a two-run single through the right side that scored Apfelbach and Meegan.  Denison added one more insurance run in the fifth when Marsit scored on an RBI single by Apfelbach.

Meegan went 3-for-3 with two runs to pace the DU offense.  Apfelbach, Clemmenson and Marsit also recorded a pair of hits.  Apfelbach drove in two runs and scored two more, while Kraus and Clemmenson each knocked in a pair.  With his double in the fourth, Apfelbach extended his hitting streak to 18 games which tied former Big Red standout Brian Regan's mark set in 2003.

In game two, Kraus took the hill looking to secure the series victory against Wabash.  The senior southpaw didn't disappoint as he scattered five hit in six innings of work.  Kraus issued just one free pass and struck out five batters.

Like Duxbury, Kraus received significant run support from his offense as the Big Red scored six runs on nine hits in the first six frames.  Clemmenson knocked in Kraus with a double down the left field line in the first inning.  In the second frame, DU plated three runs thanks to a bunt single and three Little Giant miscues.  A throwing error on an attempted double play allowed Meegan and Touhy to score, while a dropped fly ball in left gave Apfelbach the opportunity to touch the dish.

Entering the seventh with a six-run lead, Denison turned to its bullpen.  After having trouble with both DU starters, the Wabash hitters found their groove against the Big Red relievers as they tied the game with four runs in the seventh and two more in the eighth.

Neither team scored in the final inning and a half, sending the scheduled nine-inning game into extra frames.  Wabash opened the 10th with a double down the left line.  After a sacrifice bunt to the pitcher, the Little Giants were primed to grab their first lead of the afternoon.  Lucas Stippler sent a fly ball to right that looked deep enough to score David Oliger from third base.  However, Marsit showed off his cannon as he gunned down Oliger at the plate, successfully extinguishing the scoring threat and ending the inning.

In the 11th, a two-out base hit by Andrew Rodgers gave Wabash another scoring opportunity.  After a stolen base put Rodgers in scoring position, Clint Scarborough delivered a single to right center that plated the go-ahead run.  Tyler Hampton followed up with a double to left that scored Scarborough and gave the Little Giants a key insurance run.

Kraus opened the bottom of the inning with a triple to left center.  Clemmenson followed the three-bagger with what looked like a routine sacrifice fly to right.  However, another dropped fly ball in the outfield scored Kraus and allowed Clemmenson to trout into second base safely. With no outs, Ryan Mulligan dropped a sacrifice bunt that put the game-tying run 90 feet from the plate.  Following the sacrifice bunt, Wabash replaced reliever Luke Holm with the designated hitter, Christian Vukas.

The first batter Vukas faced was Hall, who stepped into the box as a pinch hitter.  With the infield drawn in, Vukas induced a ground ball to Stippler.   The Little Giant shortstop threw a strike to Hampton, gunning down Clemmenson at the plate.  With two down, Marsit roped a single down the left line that allowed pinch runner Lascelles Lagares to go from first to third.  Marsit also moved up to second on the throw in from the outfield.  With the game-winning run in scoring position, Vukas issued a base-on-balls to Touhy.  The relief pitcher regained his composure after the walk and struck out Duxbury for the final out of the game.

In addition to his performance on the mound, Kraus also had an impressive outing at the dish.  The senior went 4-for-6 and was a home run away from the cycle.  He had two triples, a double, an RBI and scored three times.  Marsit also logged three hits, while Clemmenson reached base twice and drove in three runs.  Philip Seay took the loss after allowing four runs on seven hits with three strikeouts in 4.1 innings out of the pen.

With the two hits in both games, Clemmenson has now reached safely in 24 straight games dating back to March 22 at Capital.  Additionally, Apfelbach kept his hitting streak alive with a single in the top of the 10th inning.  The sophomore now boasts the second-longest hitting streak (19 games) dating back to the 2001 season.

Denison moves to 19-12 overall and 10-6 in the NCAC West, while Wabash sits at 13-18 on the year and 5-7 in NCAC play.  With Sunday's split and a series split between Ohio Wesleyan and Wittenberg, the Big Red secured hosting rights for one of the five NCAC Crossover Weekend series on May 4-5.

DU returns to the diamond on Wednesday when they travel to Otterbein for a 4 p.m. game.