Kenyon to host Denison in NCAC finale

11/6/2026 3:30:00 PM

GAMBIER, Ohio -- Another chapter in the rivalry between Kenyon College and Denison University will unfold Sunday, as the Owls host the Big Red in the 2026 North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) Men's Soccer Tournament championship match. The game is slated for a 1 p.m. start at Mavec Field.

Kenyon, the tournament's No. 1 seed, will enter the game with a 15-3-0 record and is coming off a 1-0 win against DePauw University in Thursday's semifinal game. Denison, the No. 2 seed, owns an 11-1-6 record and used an overtime period to defeat John Carroll University, 2-1, in the other NCAC semifinal contest.

The host Owls are 8-2 at home this season and are nationally ranked as the No. 18 team in the most recent United Soccer Coaches poll. The Big Red are 4-1-2 when playing on the road and possess a No. 16 national rank from the United Soccer Coaches.

Back on October 21, Denison came to Kenyon for a regular-season showdown and escaped with a 1-0 win. That win bumped the Big Red's all-time series record against Kenyon to 41-32-10, since the teams first met in the 1952 season.

Kenyon has lost its last three games against Denison, dating back two seasons, and is 5-5 against the Big Red over the last 10 meetings, dating back to 2018. In that same 10-year span, both teams won two NCAC Tournament titles. Overall, Kenyon has five conference tournament titles to its credit and Denison has four. Head-to-head, Denison has gone 5-1 against Kenyon throughout the history of NCAC Tournament play.

Within the NCAC statistical charts, Kenyon sits atop the scoring ledger with an average of 2.89 goals per game. The Purple and White are also tops in shots (297), assists (55) and points (159). Defensively, the Owls rank first in the NCAC with nine shutouts and second with a team goals against average of 0.83.

Denison ranks as the top defensive team in the conference with a 0.67 goals against average. The Big Red have allowed just a dozen goals all season and have eight shutouts to their credit. On the other side of the pitch, the Big Red average 1.44 goals per game, which is the sixth-best mark in the conference, and 12.44 shots per game, which is the fourth-best average in the NCAC.

Per conference regulations, tickets for the final game are set at $10 for general admission. Children ages five and under are admitted free, along with students displaying a valid ID card from an NCAC member school.

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