Evan Porter recorded his first-career hat-trick and Mark Waterman added three assists to help the Big Red upset 12th-ranked Wabash on Senior Day at Barclay-Thomsen Field on Saturday in Granville. With the win, Denison remains in the hunt for one of the four spots in this year's North Coast Athletic Conference Tournament.

Saturday's win marked the fourth time since 2009 that the Big Red men's soccer team has knocked off a ranked opponent. Last year at Barclay-Thomsen Field, DU shutout Oberlin, 3-0, who entered the match ranked 23rd in the country with a 12-1-2 record. The other two victories during that stretch came in the NCAC Tournament. In 2010, Denison edged 17th-ranked Kenyon, 2-1, in Gambier. The previous year, previously undefeated and top-ranked Ohio Wesleyan fell victory to Big Red heroics in double overtime of the 2009 NCAC Tournament championship match.

The Big Red needed just one shot to gain the early advantage on the Little Giants. After drawing a fouls just right of the box, Denison was awarded a free kick about 10 yards from the end line. Waterman floated a free kick towards the far post that was headed in by fellow senior Corey Ricketts. Ricketts' seventh goal of the season set an early tone for how the match would go.

Wabash would attempt to answer in the ninth minute when Riley Pelton weaved through the defense and eventually snuck past a charging Blake Schach. Pelton tried to softly touch the ball past the goal line, but a charging Ricketts came from his left back position and kept the ball out of the yawning net.

The score remained 1-0 until the 32 minute when a yellow card just outside the box set up another DU score. Setup near the spot of the Big Red's first score, Waterman prepared to send another free kick into the box. Instead of sending it to the far post, this time the senior captain found his fellow captain, Porter, who headed the pass just inside the near post to give Denison a 2-0 advantage.

With 25.7 seconds remaining in the opening half, the senior captain duo teamed up for a second time to extend the Big Red's lead. This time, Waterman sent a corner kick that once again found the head of Porter. The senior's flick on deflected off a Little Giant defender, the post and the goalie before finding its way in the back of the net.

Denison nailed down the upset in the 67th minute when Porter completed the natural hat-trick, the first three-goal game of his career. During a scrum in the box, the senior settled a bouncing ball and ripped a shot through traffic that found its way into the lower right corner.

The Big Red outshot the Little Giants 16-12, thanks to a 10-5 advantage in the second period. DU also took 9 of the 11 corner kicks in the match. The two squads combined for 26 fouls and four cards.

Porter's three goals came off four attempts, while Waterman finished with three assists and two shots. Freshman Will Kendall also attempted three shots. Schach played almost 73 minutes in goal, making three saves. Freshman Jack Thomas closed out the final 17+ minutes as the two combined for the shutout.

Wabash's Dayton Jennings suffered the loss after allowing three goals in the opening 45 minutes. Backup keeper Chase Francoeur surrendered one goal and made three saves in the second half. Zach Woloshin paced the attack with two shots, while 10 other Wabash players registered an attempt.

With the win, Denison improves to 8-6-1 overall and 5-2 in the NCAC, while the Little Giants fall to 12-2-2 and 5-2 in league play. The Big Red will close out their regular season schedule on the road. DU will travel to nationally-ranked Ohio Wesleyan on Wednesday (Oct. 29) for a 7 p.m. match before wrapping up the regular season at DePauw on Saturday (Nov. 1). Kickoff from Greencastle, Ind. is slated for 2:30 p.m.