The Denison women's basketball team picked up their first win of the young season following a 73-53 victory over Earlham College on the final day of the Earlham Quaker Classic on Sunday in Richmond, Ind.

Coming off one of the worst ball protection performances in recent program history, Head Coach Sara Lee's squad knew they needed to make a statement Sunday afternoon. After committing 30+ turnovers for the first time in over a decade, the Big Red proved that it was just a case of first-game jitters as they cut that number in half less than 24 hours later.

The two squads were locked in a battle as they were both in search of their first victory of the season. The tightly-contested opening half went back-and-forth, eventually resulting in a 29-29 tie at the intermission.

Tied at 35-35 four minutes into the second period, Denison finally broke the game open with a 13-2 run over the course of five minutes and 10 seconds. Five different players scored during the burst, including Kellie Arter who drained a pair of 3-pointers. The sophomore trio of Jordan Holmes, Alyssa Wagner and Emily Krumpe each chipped in a pair, while freshman Akilah Fletcher also had a tally. In addition to scoring 13 points, DU also grabbed 15 rebounds, including seven offensive boards, during that span. Wagner and Krumpe both logged two rebounds on the offensive end.

The second-half run swung the momentum firmly in Denison's favor as they were able to build a 69-47 lead en route to securing the 20-point victory. The Big Red hit 39 percent (27-for-69) from the floor and connected on 14-of-17 at the foul line (82.4 percent). After turning the ball over 35 times against IU-East on Saturday, DU committed just 17 giveaways while forcing 15 Earlham turnovers. Denison won the battle on the glass 56-38 and turned 20 offensive rebounds into 19 second-chance points.

Arter led Denison with 20 points after going 7-for-14 from the field including a 4-for-6 performance from three-point range. Arter also grabbed four rebounds and dished out four assists in 32 minutes. Holmes posted her 20th-career double-double after scoring 10 points and pulling down 17 rebounds to go along with five blocks. Fletcher reached double figures for the first time in her college career, chipping in 11 points along with seven rebounds and a block. Gabrielle Nottage recorded eight points, four assists and four rebounds, while Wagner grabbed seven boards. At the conclusion of the game, Arter was one of six athletes named to the Earlham Quaker Classic All-Tournament team. The junior wing averaged 18.5 points per game and shot 48.3 percent (14-of-29) from the field.

Kasin Spay paced the Quakers with 16 points, while Mariah Flynn chipped in 15 tallies. JaLissa Watt had 11 rebounds, one block and three steals. As a team, the Quakers hit 16 of their 60 attempts (62.7 percent) from the field and converted a 62-percent clip (16-for-26) at the free throw line.

DU improves to 1-1, while Earlham falls to 0-2 on the year. Denison returns to action next weekend when they travel to Washington University-St. Louis for the 14th Annual McWilliams Classic. The Big Red will open the tournament on Friday (Nov. 21) against Southwestern (Texas). Tip-off from St. Louis, Mo. Is scheduled for 5 p.m. CST.