GRANVILLE, Ohio -- The Kenyon College women's lacrosse team battled back from an early deficit to take a lead in the North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) Tournament semifinal, but the top-seeded Denison University Big Red pulled away in the second half to end Kenyon's season. The Owls led 5-4 at the start of the second quarter, but the Big Red advanced to the NCAC Tournament championship with a 21-11 victory.

The matchup between the No. 4-seeded Owls and defending champion Big Red played out similarly to the teams' regular-season battle, and the final score was just one goal off of the 20-11 margin from April 12. Just like a few weeks ago, the teams went back and forth early and matched each other at seven goals apiece. Wednesday's 7-7 tie came late in the second quarter, but the No. 20-ranked Big Red pulled away from that point forward.

The teams weren't too far off in most statistical categories, but a few more Kenyon turnovers led to extra Denison shots, which contributed to the 10-goal margin. The visiting Owls managed to win the draw control battle 19-16, but a few turnovers after gaining control negated the advantage. The Owls had 19 turnovers to Dension's 15, and the Big Red outshot Kenyon 31-23 overall and 22-14 in shots on goal.

Though the teams took five-plus minutes to put the first goal on the board, Denison landed the first blows and jumped out to a 3-0 lead. However, the Owls battled back and ended the opening period on a 4-1 run, including three straight scores from Lily Mason, Ashley Auerbach, and Spencer Kirsch.

Kenyon maintained the momentum and put up the first points of the second quarter, giving the Owls a 5-4 lead just 43 seconds into the period. Denison fought back and scored three straight goals, but a 2-0 Owls run tied the score at 7-7 with 5:52 left in the half.

Denison took a 10-8 lead into the locker room, but the Owls kept hanging around after halftime. Ella Baxter and Blythe Karras cut the deficit to three on separate occasions, and Kenyon trailed 13-10 midway through the third frame. Unfortunately for the Owls, they could not pull any closer. Denison scored three unanswered goals on either side of the quarter break, and the Big Red closed the game on an 8-1 run to avoid the upset.

The Owls close the book on a 2025 campaign that saw Kenyon finish 7-9 overall and 3-3 in the NCAC. Denison (13-4, 6-0 NCAC) advances to play The College of Wooster in the NCAC Tournament Championship.