OBERLIN, Ohio (January 20, 2024) – Just one game after handing DePauw University its first loss of the season in the North Coast Athletic Conference, the Denison University women's basketball team kept its strong play going and gave Oberlin College its first home loss of the year with a 74-62 decision in favor of the Big Red on Saturday at Phillips Gymnasium.

In a matchup between two teams with identical records both overall and in the NCAC entering the day, it was a 25-point third quarter that featured a 9-0 run for the Big Red that made the difference.

Freshman Ada Taute recorded her first-career double-double with 23 points and 11 rebounds, a career-high in both categories, all while shooting 50 percent or better from both the field (9-17) and from 3-point range (4-8). Fellow-freshman Abby Cooch added 16 points and four assists and was a perfect 5-for-5 from the free throw line.

Denison finished with just four made field goals and shot 22.2 percent in each of the first two quarters but was able to stay in the game down 30-26 at halftime after committing only one turnover in the first 20 minutes and using a 10-6 advantage on the offensive glass to take a 12-3 lead on second chance points. In just the first quarter alone, Denison led 8-0 on second chance points and did not commit a single turnover.

The Big Red then came out on a mission in the second half to get the ball to their junior transfer from Oberlin, Bryana Woodard, who scored twice in the first minute and a half of the third quarter, both on assists from Maddie Goodman.

A little over a minute later, a defensive rebound by Brooke Toigo led to a layup by Taute, tying it at 32-32, and then after another defensive board by Toigo on the next Oberlin possession, Toigo connected on her second 3-pointer of the game to put the Big Red in front 35-32.  

Tied at 35-35 entering the final five minutes of the third quarter, Denison went on a huge 9-0 run to take control of the game as Abigail Westmeyer got it started with a layup on the assist from Cooch, who then added an and-one on the next Big Red possession.

The 9-0 run for Denison was finished with back-to-back layups by Morgan Kress, making it 44-35 Big Red with under three minutes remaining in the third quarter. In all, it was an 18-5 run to start the third quarter for Denison.

With a minute and a half left in the third quarter, a 3-pointer by Taute made it 47-37, the first double-digit lead of the game for either team, and then it stayed at a 10-point lead for the Big Red (51-41) going into the fourth quarter after layups by Cooch and Taute in the final minute of the period.

Taute added another 3-pointer early in the fourth quarter and then scored on a layup assisted by Woodard to make it 58-44 two and a half minutes into the period. Then after the Yeowomen cut their deficit to six (60-54) with four and a half minutes remaining, Taute responded with a deep 3-pointer to get her over the 20-point mark for the first time in her career.

Holding a seven-point lead (63-56) approaching the final three minutes of the game, a big and-one by Woodard made it a 10-point game again (66-56), and then an offensive rebound and putback by Woodard made it 70-58 near the final minute to put the game out of reach for her former team.

Woodard finished with 11 points and seven rebounds while shooting 50 percent (5-10) from the field while her fellow frontcourt mate, Kress, matched her with 11 points and was a perfect 5-for-5 from the field.

Not to be forgotten, Goodman finished with seven assists for the second time in the last five games.

Denison shot the lights out in the second half, scoring a combined 48 points after shooting 11-for-20 (55.0 percent) in the third quarter and 10-for-16 (62.5 percent) in the fourth, all while connecting on two 3-pointers in each of the final three quarters.

Denison also finished with a season-low three turnovers and outscored Oberlin 42-24 in the paint and 22-3 on second chance points after outrebounding the Yeowomen 16-10 on the offensive glass.

It was the first win for Denison head coach Maureen Hirt against her previous school, and it was also the end of a five-game losing streak for the Big Red against the Yeowomen. With the win, Denison improves to 13-4 overall, 4-2 in the NCAC and 7-2 on the road, and moves into a tie for third place in the conference standings. Oberlin, meanwhile, falls to 12-5 overall, 3-3 in the conference and 5-1 at home.

Next up on Wednesday, January 24, Denison will host Hiram College starting at 6 p.m.