Eileen Barrer

Eileen Barrer scored a go-ahead goal that made it 9-8 with 13:38 remaining in the game, but Denison University answered back, as Jenny Strathern scored twice down the stretch to give the Big Red a 10-9 victory over The College of Wooster in a critical North Coast Athletic Conference tilt Saturday at Granville, Ohio.

With the loss, and Allegheny College's (12-5, 4-2 NCAC) win earlier in the day, the Fighting Scots (9-5, 4-2 NCAC) dropped to No. 3 in the NCAC standings and will visit the No. 2 Gators in the semifinals of the NCAC Tournament on Thursday at 3 p.m.

Nina Dine and Madison Carey scored to put Wooster ahead 2-0 in the early goings, but Denison (11-4, 6-0 NCAC) put up three scores in a row during the middle of the first half to take a slight 3-2 lead. The Scots evened things up at 3-3 on a Clare Nelson-Johnson goal, but then Denison went on a four-goal run to close out the half, which included two scores in the final 2:35, giving the Big Red a 7-3 cushion at the break.

It was Wooster's turn to string together a run to start the second half, as Dine and Carey combined for four unanswered goals in less than 10 minutes of play that tied the game 7-7. Denison took a brief 8-7 lead, until Emily Meyer and finally Barrer scored a pair of goals that put the Scots ahead by one (9-8) with 13:38 to go.

Denison's Strathern then scored twice on assists from Phoebe Myhrum and Molly Cornbrooks, respectively, with the second coming with 6:28 left on the clock, and then the Big Red successfully limited Wooster's opportunities on the other end to take the game 10-9.

Statistically, Dine and Carey both recorded hat tricks, and Barrer totaled a goal and an assist. Goalkeeper Shawna Ferris made 12 saves in defeat.