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Final Four
Hailey Owens
77
Winner Denison Den 28-2,14-1 NCAC
64
Wash. & Lee WLU 31-1,16-0 ODAC
Winner
Denison Den
28-2,14-1 NCAC
77
Final
64
Wash. & Lee WLU
31-1,16-0 ODAC
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 F
Denison Den 24 14 12 27 77
Wash. & Lee WLU 16 12 22 14 64

Game Recap: Women's Basketball |

SEE YOU IN SALEM: Denison Defeats No. 3 Washington and Lee to Continue Historic Run Into NCAA Tournament “Final Four”

The Big Red hand the Generals their first loss of the season to reach the national semifinals

Lexington, Va. - Every college basketball player dreams of playing in moments as high in caliber as the NCAA Tournament, and reaching the "Final Four" is one of the highest privileges and heights a team could reach; the Denison women's basketball just lived that, as they defeated No. 3 Washington and Lee 77-64 to claim the Sectional Final Championship and punch their ticket in the national semifinals. Ada Taute led the way once again with 24 points on 62.5% shooting, and first-year Molly Dorighi followed suit with a career-high 19 points. The Big Red led by as much as 15 and never trailed entering the fourth quarter. Denison improves to 28-2, while Washington and Lee finish their season 31-1.

First Quarter: Denison started out strong, with Ada Taute picking up right where she left off in their win against John Carroll, as she scored seven of the first 10 points to take a 10-4 lead halfway through the first. The Generals would fight their way back in, as they regained the lead for a couple minutes until a 9-0 run from the Big Red with key buckets from Abby Cooch, Taute, and Morgan Kress to give Denison an eight point advantage heading into the second quarter, 24-16. Taute finished with 11 in just the first quarter alone.

Second Quarter: The Big Red would continue to keep their multi-possession lead and answer every Generals basket. Taute rattled home a three to get things started, while Molly Dorighi made four consecutive free throws to go up 31-23 with under five minutes to play. Brooke Toigo got in on the action with a triple, while Anelly Mad-toingué grabbed her seventh rebound in the process. The second quarter ended with a big time stop from Denison, and the Big Red went into halftime up 38-28. Denison held Washington and Lee to 5-20 (25%) shooting in the second quarter.

Third Quarter: A rocky third quarter would ensue for Denison, as Washington and Lee mounted a comeback with a 16-2 run to take the lead 46-44 with two minutes to go in the third. The Big Red, who are no strangers to big time moments, did not falter, as they raced themselves back into the game with a Taute layup once again and a momentum shifting final second layup from Cooch would knot the game up 50 a piece heading into the final frame. 

Fourth Quarter: Big time quarters and defense have been the standard for Denison all season, and this one was the biggest so far this season. Cooch continued her last second effort in the third into the fourth, scoring four straight points to get things rolling for Denison. Dorighi cashed two more at the line, and Taute, just as she had done all night, took to the basket another layup to go up six. The Generals brought it back within two, but the most crucial swing in momentum came in the next possessions, as Dorighi and Taute drained back-to-back threes to give the Big Red an eight-point lead heading into the media timeout. In the next coming minutes, the Denison defense shined, as Mad-toingue picked up a steal, while Cooch nabbed her seventh rebound along with sound perimeter and interior defense locking down the manageable lead. 

A three-pointer from the Generals brought it back within five, but another short four-point run gave Denison a nine-point advantage with 1:30 left to go. Another stout defensive possession gave Denison the ball back, and with the Generals in foul mode, the Big Red could start to feel a victory forming in Holekamp Gym, and make the hour trip to Salem, Virginia to play in the NCAA Tournament Semifinals. Dorighi and Cooch would bounce back and forth draining free throws, and Denison would live to fight another round, clinching the NCAA Sectional Championship and move on to the "Final Four", 77-64.

Key Highlights
  • Ada Taute led the Big Red in scoring for the second-straight game with 24 points on 62.5% shooting. She also grabbed four rebounds.
  • Molly Dorighi finished with a career-high 19 points, with 14 of them coming from the charity stripe. She went 14-16 (87.5%) from the free throw line, and had two steals.
  • Abby Cooch (12) and Brooke Toigo (10) were the other Big Red to finish in double figures.
  • Anelly Mad-toingué grabbed 15 rebounds and blocked six shots on the night in another dominant performance
  • Denison held Washington and Lee to 28% shooting on the night, and 4-21 from behind the arc.
  • The Big Red drained seven three-pointers, going 41.2% from deep.
  • Denison knocked down 22 free throws.
  • Denison led for 81.7% of the game, and never trailed by more than two points.
  • This loss marks Washington and Lee's first this season.
  • Denison's 28 wins ties a program record for most wins in a season (28-1, 2010-11).
Up Next for the Big Red

Denison will take on UW-Oshkosh next Thursday, March 19 at the Creeger Center in Salem, Virginia in a time to be determined.
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