WHEATON, Ill. – The Denison women's soccer team opened their 2017 campaign with a 4-1 loss to Loras College on Friday afternoon in Wheaton, Illinois.  This was the opening match of Wheaton College's Bob Baptista Invitational.

Loras jumped out to an early 2-0 lead while outshooting the Big Red 9-2 in the first half.  In the second half, Denison countered with a strong offensive attack, outshooting the Duhawks 11-5.  Of Denison's 13 shots, seven were on-goal but it took until the 87th minute for the Big Red to put a tally on the scoreboard.  That's when sophomore Phoebe Gilbert beat the keeper for her first career goal.

Trailing Loras 2-0 at the half, the Big Red opened the second half aggressively but Loras senior Gretchen Schultz gave the Duhawks a 4-0 advantage after two of her shots connected within a four-minute span midway through the period.

Denison senior Jenny Herold chipped in with a three save performance, while last year's NCAC Midfielder of the Year, Maggie Armstrong, finished with one shot on goal. Loras goalkeeper Kaylee Coble improved to 1-0 after a five save performance while playing all 90 minutes.

Denison will return to action on Saturday, Sept. 2 when they take on Whitworth University (Wash.) of the Northwest Conference at 12:30 p.m. eastern in Wheaton, Illinois.