Hailey Owens

Box Score

Denison Den 30-2,14-1 NCAC

Scranton SCR 32-1,18-0 Landmark

Denison Den

30-2,14-1 NCAC

Final

Mar. 21, 2026

Scranton SCR

32-1,18-0 Landmark

Score By Periods
Team	1	2	3	4	F
Denison Den	11	8	14	22	55
Scranton SCR	10	1	23	7	41

Game Recap: Women's Basketball | 3/21/2026 8:03:00 PM | Cael Dent — Coordinator of Athletics Communications and Broadcast

ETCHED IN HISTORY: Denison Defeats Previously Unbeaten Scranton For First Title in Program History!

Denison used a 14-0 fourth quarter to clinch their first national championship in school history.

Salem, Va. - We belonged here, as Denison fourth year Head Coach Maureen Hirt said in the post-game interview shortly after Denison's first national title in program history after beating Scranton 55-41. The Big Red certainly did, winning five out of their six tournament games by double digits and taking down two previously undefeated teams in Washington and Lee and Scranton. Abby Cooch and Ada Taute led the Big Red in points, combining for 33 out of the 55, and Anelly Mad-toingué pulled down 16 rebounds in a dominant defensive game. In moments where the Royals started to come back, the Big Red never faltered, and kept cool the entire game to claim the goal they had set out four months ago, a national championship.

How It Went Down

First Quarter: Both teams struggled to get going early on, with the Big Red getting early buckets from Ada Taute, Anelly Mad-toingué, and Adelyn Moore to go up 6-4 in the first five minutes of play. After a Scranton three, Violet Mitchell came down the floor for a crucial and-one to go ahead by two points, 9-7. Brooke Toigo made it a two possession game with another layup, but the Royals drained a buzzer beater three to bring it within one heading into the second quarter, 11-10. Mad-toingue finished the first quarter with six rebounds, while Mitchell led in points with three.

Second Quarter: Shots continued to stall for both squads, as Denison and Scranton combined for just nine points total, with Denison scoring eight of them. Cooch kicked things off with a three followed by a Molly Dorighi layup, and Mitchell knocked down a triple to head into halftime with a 19-11 lead. Scranton did not make a field goal in the second quarter, as their lone point came off of a free throw, and it was their lowest point total in the first half all season. The Big Red shot 8-38 from the field, while the Royals shot a season-low 4-37 (10.8%). It was the lowest amount of points Denison had let up in a half all season.

Third Quarter: Scranton started to get rolling, going on a 9-0 to cut the Big Red lead to one six minutes into the third quarter. Cooch was able to get her second bucket of the quarter, making the lead 23-20 before the Royals came back down the court on a 5-0 run to take back the lead. Always shining in big moments, Taute delivered once again, draining a three to go up by one, then Adelyn Moore would come up with a clutch steal and fastbreak layup to make it a 28-25 game. Both teams would trade baskets down the stretch, and another Scranton buzzer beater three would give them the lead heading into the final frame of the season, 34-33.

Fourth Quarter: Heading into the fourth, Denison did what they had done all tournament: take over. Scranton started the scoring with a layup, giving them a three point lead. Then, it was Cooch time, as the junior knocked down back-to-back triples on consecutive possessions to tie the game back up at 39 a piece. Taute then got on the action, netting a three of her own before mad-toingue scooped in a layup off of a nice pass from Cooch for a 44-39 lead. With shots not falling for Scranton and Denison playing exceptional defense, the Big Red capitalized, going on a 14-0 run with buckets from Taute, Cooch, and mad-toingue before the Royals stopped the bleeding with a layup, giving Denison the 50-41 lead with three minutes.

After a Scranton timeout, Denison looked to hold the ball for as long as they could to kill clock, and with seconds remaining on the shot clock, Cooch did what she had done to send Denison to their first Sweet 16 appearance in program history, by knocking down a wing three for the dagger, and sending the Big Red faithful into a frenzy. In the final minutes, Denison could feel itself closing in on one of the greatest feats in school history, and when the final buzzer sounded, the hard work had paid off, as they defeated Scranton 55-41 in Salem, Virginia, for the national championship.

In the press conference, the Big Red relished in the victory, with Head Coach Maureen Hirt praising the team for their dedication to the program. "I think it is the players you build it with," said Hirt. "It started out as a vision and we have the right people on the boat. They have invested so much into the relationships with each other and with their coaches and our athletic administration."

Sophomore Anelly Mad-toingué put it into words best. In a fourth quarter huddle, she rallied her team in the most pivotal portion of the game. "We do not win playing solo basketball, we win with all five of us on the court." As coach Hirt says, we win with all 18 of us, and we need to stay composed throughout the rest of the game."

Key Highlights

Denison held Scranton to under its scoring average (80.4), field goal percentage (46.0), and three point percentage (35.1).
This is the lowest number of points Scranton has scored all season, and the lowest output since the 2014-15 season. The 20.3% shooting is also the lowest for the Royals as well.
The Royals only made 14 field goals all game, and held their leading scorer Kaci Kranson to seven points under her season average.
Denison outscored Scranton in the paint 30-10, and had 18 in the second half.
The Big Red turned up the defensive intensity in the fourth quarter, scoring seven points off turnvoers and holding Scranton to zero.
Denison shot 9-16 (56.25%) from the field and 4-8 (50%) from three in the fourth quarter.
Abby Cooch finished with 18 points and hit four triples and added nine rebounds and four assists.
Ada Taute finished with her second double-double of the season, cashing in 15 points and hauling in 10 rebounds.
Anelly Mad-toingué had a team-high 16 rebounds to go along with eight points and three blocks.
Violet Mitchell (6), Adelyn Moore (4), Molly Dorighi (2), and Brooke Toigo (2) were the other Big Red to score.
Denison returns their starting lineup, consisting of underclassmen.
Denison won all of their tournament games by double-digits except for one, and took down two unbeaten squads.
It is the first national championship for the Big Red, and first for the NCAC since DePauw won it back in 2013.
Denison graduates three seniors: Jess Zittel, Katie Houpt, and Brooke Toigo
Head Coach Maureen Hirt, Olivia Woolam, Olivia Johnson, and Griffin Tullis all represent the Big Red coaching staff, and are crowned champions.