GRANVILLE -- The Denison field hockey team opened their three-game North Coast Athletic Conference homestand with a convincing 4-1 victory over rival Ohio Wesleyan on Saturday at Piper Stadium.

It took almost 10 minutes before either team registered a shot attempt, but when the Big Red finally did they made the most of it. Freshman Charlotte Happel won a battle against a Bishop defender, setting up a breakaway opportunity. One-on-one with goalie Jackie Felciano, Happel ripped a shot into the lower left corner for the first goal of the afternoon at 9:27.

Nearly 11 and a half minutes later, Happel found the back of the cage once again to double Denison's advantage. Senior captain Abby Martone sent in a cross from the right end line that ended up in front of the goal. The freshman was able to bury a shot from point blank range for her 13th goal of the season.

The scored remained 2-0 until the 38th minute when sophomore Lucy Pearsall got involved in the scoring. Pearsall worked the ball down the middle of the field before unloading a shot from 10 yards out that snuck just inside the right post. The sophomore's 10th of the year came at 37:09.

Two minutes and six seconds later, Pearsall added another point to her total when she assisted on Melissa Hoey's third goal of 2016. Pearsall sent in an entry pass from the right side that was redirected into the goal by Hoey, who was set up near the left post.

The Bishops' Ashley Barno ended DU's bid at a seventh shutout when she scored in the 56th minute. Barno redirected an initial shot attempt by Courtney Peterson past Ellen Westfall to set the final score at 4-1.

Denison outshot OWU 12-3 which included a 7-2 advantage in shots on frame. The Batting Bishops outcornered the Big Red 6-2 with all six coming in the second period. Pearsall put all four of her shots on frame, while Happel's two goals came off her only two attempts. Westfall finished the game with one save, while Ohio Wesleyan's goalie tandem of Jackie Feliciano and Grace Jones recorded two stops apiece.

With the win, Denison improves to 11-3 overall and 8-2 in NCAC play, while the Bishops fall to 5-9 and 3-6 in league action. The Big Red resumes competition next weekend when they host Earlham and DePauw on consecutive days. DU will host the Quakers on Saturday at 11 a.m. and will battle the Tigers at 12 p.m. on Sunday.