GRANVILLE, Ohio – The Kenyon College field hockey team (4-5) traveled 35 minutes South on Saturday morning to face the Denison University Big Red (5-2), in the season's third North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) game. 

Kenyon's offense could not get any momentum going in the rivalry matchup, falling 4-0 in Granville. 

Early in the first, Denison had consistent offensive pressure, testing Owls goalkeeper Megan Lydon with two athletic saves. Towards the end of the quarter, it was Kenyon's turn to dial up some offense, with great shots from Justine Cole, Maren Lawrence, and Grace Lane, but all failing to hit the cage. At the end of the first, Denison had a slight advantage in shots 3-4, with corners notched at one apiece. 

The second quarter began with a solid corner chance for the Owls, but a turnover in the offensive zone let the Big Red defenders clear the ball. Denison had a significant possession advantage in this quarter, but the defense led by good stops from Lauryn Rauschenberger and Lucy Scott were able to keep the Denison offense quiet. In the final minutes of the quarter, Denison was knocking on the door, with a diving Lydon save leading to a corner with 2:38 remaining in the half. At the corner, a dribbler through the circle found the stick of Abigal Hano, who struck the ball past Lydon and was headed wide, but Claire Willoughby on the back post was able to touch it into the net, making it 1-0 Big Red after two quarters. 

In the third, Denison wasted no time in expanding its lead. Grace Lock lined up to take the 25-yard free hit and drove through a pack of Kenyon defenders and hit a low shot past Lydon, making it 2-0 Denison just over a minute into the quarter. A successful defensive stand after a loose ball scrap in front of the Kenyon net with five minutes remaining in the half and a charging deflection in traffic by Lydon after that kept the game at 2-0 to end the third.

Two minutes into the fourth, Denison found the back of the net again, as Nina Casingal threaded a pass off of a corner to Willoughby, who redirected the pass through her legs and into the net for her second goal of the game. Two minutes later, Kate Hinshaw chipped a shot from Lila Smith past Lydon to extend the Big Red advantage to four. 

For the game, Lydon had eight saves in the net for the Owls, in a game where all 12 Big Red shots were on target. Offensively, Ella Adamec registered the lone shot on goal for Kenyon. 

The loss drops the team's record to 4-5 on the season and 1-2 in the NCAC. The Owls look to bounce back next Saturday at 11:00 a.m. playing in Gambier for the first time in five games against DePauw University.