GAMBIER, Ohio – The Kenyon College women's soccer team jumped out to a 1-0 lead Saturday against rival Denison University, but the Ladies could not add to their advantage and left room for the Big Red to rally for a 4-1 North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) win at Mavec Field.

The loss was the first in conference play for Kenyon (5-6-0, 2-1-0 NCAC) and cost the Ladies their share of first place in the NCAC standings. Denison (6-4-3, 3-0-0 NCAC) used the win to take sole possession of that top spot.

Early in the game, things looked good for the Ladies. During a transition in the game's 10th minute, sophomore Olivia Dion made a couple of spin moves to elude a defender near midfield. Once free, she sent a pass ahead for senior Fallon Raviol, who was breaking down the right side. Raviol met the ball, steered it around Patil Tcholakian, the charging Denison goalkeeper, and then booted it into the open Big Red net for her team-leading fifth goal of the season.

That Kenyon lead held up for a while, but the Denison offense brought a lot of pressure throughout the remainder of the half. Over the final ten minutes of the half, that pressure paid off in the form of two goals. At the 35:39 mark, Denison senior Logan Agin fired a shot from outside the box that found its way past Kenyon goalkeeper Erika Freiberg and into the left corner of the Ladies' goal.

Approximately three minutes later, Denison claimed its first lead of the game. Freshman Amy Chiero connected with senior Emma Phinney in the left side of the Kenyon box. Phinney drove to goal and slid her shot under a diving Freiberg.

Now trailing by a goal, the Ladies struggled to mount a comeback in the second half. In fact, Denison dominated possession and really didn't give Kenyon an opportunity to get back into things.

The back-breaker for the Ladies came four minutes into the second half. That's when Chiero struck again. Instead of setting up another Denison goal, she weaved through the Kenyon defense and scored on her own, putting the Big Red ahead, 3-1.

Late in the game, Denison tacked on a meaningless goal when a crossing pass was misplayed by the Kenyon defense. Agin, in the right place at the right time, corralled the loose ball and tapped in her second goal of the game.

Overall, Denison tallied a 22-13 lead in shots taken and a 15-6 advantage in shots on goal. Freiberg finished with 11 saves, while Tcholakian made five.