Box Score With 10 minutes to go in Wednesday's North Coast Athletic Conference clash with Kenyon, things didn't look promising for the Big Red. The Ladies had a comfortable 12 point lead and were eased by the fact that Denison had managed to shoot just 19 percent for the game at that point.
All of that changed as Denison put together a ferocious comeback powered by a full court press and some newfound confidence at the offensive end. When the final horn sounded the Big Red walked off the court with the improbable 43-39 victory.
Denison's comeback began with a Taylor Lindquist 3-pointer that cut the Kenyon lead to single digits with 9:49 left. Two minutes later, Kenyon's Bailey Dominguez scored on a backdoor pass that kept the Ladies lead at 37-28. Over the next 7:30, Kenyon would only score one more basket.
From the 7:30 mark on, DU would outscore Kenyon 15-2. Despite the impressive run, Denison still trailed by five after a pair of free throws by Alyx Ingram with 2:29 to play. After a Kenyon miss, Kellie Arter drilled her first 3-pointer of the game in front of her own bench to get her team to within a basket. Another KC miss resulted in Jordan Holmes' 17th rebound of the game. She gave the ball up, ran the floor and Arter would find her in transition for the layup, tying the game for the first time since late in the first half.
With 56 seconds left, Kenyon's Lauren Kriete took a 3-point try that was off the mark and rebounded by Holmes. She was fouled and sent to the line. Holmes proceeded to knock down the pair, putting her team up 41-39 with 53 ticks left.
Midway through the shot clock, Dominguez would take a 3-pointer that wound up in the arms of Arter who called a quick timeout. After talking things over, Ingram made a veteran play, driving into the lane and scoring in traffic with 12 seconds left to give Denison a four point lead. Kenyon would put an end to the contest with a turnover on their next possession.
Denison outscored Kenyon 28-20 in the second half and 19-6 over the final 10:26. Gabrielle Nottage scored a team-high 11 points and Holmes finished with eight points, four blocks and 18 rebounds. Lindquist chipped in eight points and Mary Margaret Habel followed with five rebounds.
Kenyon was led in scoring by Sidney Cera and Sarah Hobbs who both finished with seven points. DU held a 40-33 advantage on the glass but Kenyon edged Denison in the turnover battle, 20-17.
The Big Red improves to 12-11 and 8-6 in the NCAC while Kenyon drops to 6-15 and 4-9 in conference play. Denison will return to action next Wednesday (Feb. 18) when they travel to Hiram College for a 6 p.m. tip-off.
