Fourth-ranked DePauw University defeated Denison University, 69-41, to capture the 2014 North Coast Athletic Conference Tournament Championship for the third consecutive season.  Denison's season comes to a close with an outstanding 21-7 record.

DePauw took a 40-23 lead in the first half behind 13 points from Savannah Trees.  DU shot 37 percent in the opening period, conversely, the Tigers connected on 50 percent of its shot attempts and went 2-of-5 from long range.

In the second half, offensive became even tougher to come by for the Big Red as went 8-for-30 over the final 20 minutes of play.

Trees led DePauw with 17 points while going 8-for-14 from the field.  Alison Stephens recorded a double-double with 10 points and 11 rebounds, and Alex Gasaway ended with nine points.

Denison was led by senior Gretchen Staubach who scored eight points in her final collegiate game. She leaves Denison with 645 career points.  First-year Jordan Holmes scored six points but matched her season average with 14 rebounds. She also posted three blocked shots.  The 6'1 rookie enjoyed a breakout campaign for the Red and White.  Holmes broke the conference and school record for rebounds (394) and blocked shots (164) in a season.  She also is leading all of Division III in blocked shots per game with an average of 6.1.

Following Staubach in the scoring department was Mary Margaret Habel with seven points.  Holmes was named to the NCAC All-Tournament team after scoring 33 points, grabbing 54 rebounds and blocking 14 shots in three games.  In the final, Holmes set new NCAC Tournament records for rebounds, braking Katy Sturtz' record set in 2001. She also passed up Denison graduate Kristen Sheffield and set the NCAC Tournament record for blocked shots.  Sheffield matched that record twice, in 2006 and 2007.

Staubach also joined Holmes on the NCAC All-Tournament team. Her 19 points led Denison to a semifinal win over Ohio Wesleyan on Friday night.

With the win, DePauw earns the NCAC's automatic bid to the NCAA Division III Tournament.  They return to defend their national championship with a record of 27-1.  Trees was named the Tournament's Most Valuable Player.