GAMBIER, Ohio – A season ago, the Kenyon Ladies soccer team pulled out a surprising North Coast Athletic Conference Tournament title, their first-ever tournament championship. Now, they'll have a chance to defend it.
 
Kenyon (11-6-1, 5-3-1 NCAC) will begin its quest for another conference crown November 4 on the road against Denison University, the team that was picked as the preseason favorite to win the NCAC. It'll be the second time these two institutions have met in the NCAC Tournament with the last occasion coming November 1, 2006 with the Big Red earning a convincing 6-0 win.
 
The Big Red (14-3, 6-2 NCAC) will have plenty of motivation in this semifinal match as they fell to the Ladies 1-0 in double-overtime at Mavec Field back on October 17. In that match, both teams had numerous scoring opportunities, but Ladies forward Maggie Smith provided the lone goal to leave coach Gail Murphy's squad upset.
 
Hoping to lead Kenyon to victory is a handful of capable offensive players and senior goalie Alissa Poolpol. Coming into postseason action, Smith leads the team with nine goals which is the second-highest total in the conference. Gillian Blackwell has contributed six goals and three assists while freshman Claudia Brown, who has been limited lately due to injury, has scored five goals and added three assists. The Ladies will look to get around Denison keeper Jenny Herold who is second in the NCAC in goals against average (0.73).
 
On the other side of the ball, the Ladies boast one of the best defenses in the NCAC. To date, Kenyon has allowed just three goals in conference play which is tops in the league. Poolpol leads in goals against average (0.54) while notching 72 saves. The Kenyon defense will be tasked with slowing down the Big Red attack which has produced a league-high 20 goals. Eight different Denison players have tallied multiple goals this season with Jacquie Graham registering a team-high eight scores.
 
Ticket prices for Wednesday's match which starts at 7 p.m. at Barclay-Thomsen Field are $5 for adults and $3 for children and students without a valid NCAC ID.  Any NCAC student with a valid NCAC Institution ID will be admitted free of charge. The match will also offer a live video broadcast and live stats.