MEADVILLE, Pa. – Denison broke open a scoreless game with 16 points in a seven-minute span midway through the second quarter, and rode the momentum to a 33-7 victory over the Gators at Frank B. Fuhrer Field.

While holding a slim 19-18 edge in first downs for the contest, the Big Red (6-1, 5-1 NCAC) used a strong rushing attack, gaining 222 yards and scoring two touchdowns on the ground, while holding a commanding edge in time of possession, 34:15-25:45.

Allegheny freshman quarterback Logan Lee completed 19 passes for a season-high 216 yards, but the Gators struggled on the ground, gaining just 26 yards, and committed a pair of turnovers.

Winning the opening toss and deferring to the second half, the Gators looked to the defense to provide a spark to open the game, and the unit eventually did just that.  Denison embarked on a lengthy drive, eventually setting up first and goal inside the 9-yardline, but the Gator defenders stood up to the challenge.  After a first down rush put the ball at the 5-yardline, the Gators' Will Aeschbacher stuffed a run for a five-yard loss, before Chris Patrick came up with an 11-yard sack to bring the ball out to the 19 yardline.  The Denison 37-yard field goal attempt went wide left, and the 13-play drive, which spanned nearly eight minutes, was for naught.

The Gators were unable to put together a lengthy drive of their own, but punter Chris Bourne blasted a season-long 66-yard boot to pin the Big Red inside their own 12-yardline.  Big Red quarterback Canaan Gabele opened the drive with a 35-yard run, but it was as far as the visitors would get.  Patrick followed with his second sack of the quarter, before the next two plays resulted in a loss of three yards, forcing Denison's first punt of the afternoon to close out a scoreless first quarter.

The Gators' opening possession of the second quarter also ended in a Bourne punt, and a 27-yard return gave Denison the ball at midfield.  Gabele again opened the drive with a long run, this time scrambling 48 yards to the Allegheny 2-yardline, but the Gator defense answered with another goal line stand, capped off with Tristan Rhoades and Travis Thomas teaming up for a stop on a third down pass just inside the one.  Going for it on fourth down, the Big Red were whistled for a false start penalty, and were forced to settle for a 20-yard field goal to go up 3-0 with 10:25 left in the second half.

After Allegheny's next drive ended with Bourne's third punt of the day, Denison quickly added to its lead by using a six-play, 42-yard drive that was capped off with a two-yard touchdown run by Jackson Young to go up 10-0 with 6:27 remaining.  The Big Red would keep the momentum, as an interception by Zach Neufield prematurely ended the Gators' ensuing drive, and led to a 10-yard touchdown run by Gabele.  The extra point was blocked by Thomas, and the score stood at 16-0 with just under three minutes left in the second quarter.

On the first play of the Gators' ensuing drive, Juwan Campbell burst up the middle for a 17-yard run, before the hosts went to the passing game in hopes of cutting into the deficit before halftime. Lee completed a 38-yard pass to Lucas Morton, who made a leaping grab in traffic on the sideline, to bring the ball to the Dension 25.  However, the drive would stall, and the Gators were unable to convert on fourth-and-five with just inside a minute left in the half.  Denison would then run out the clock, and take a 16-point lead into the intermission.

After receiving the opening kickoff in the third quarter, the Gators saw their drive end abruptly with a fumble on their own 32 yardline.  Just two plays later, though, Allegheny would get the ball right back.  Will Aeschbacher burst through the line to throw Gabele for a 17-yard sack and force a fumble, which was recovered by Aspen Matthey-Feldman at midfield. Allegheny couldn't turn the turnover into points, as the drive ended in another Gator punt.  It was a harbinger of things to come for the third quarter, as each of the final five drives of the stanza resulted in punts and the game entered the final frame with Denison holding the 16-point cushion.

The Big Red opened the fourth quarter driving, with Gabele completing two passes for 38 yards to set up first down at the Allegheny 11.  The Gator defense buckled down for yet another goal line stand, and Denison was forced to bring the field goal unit out after stalling out at the Gator one-yardline.  The 19-yard attempt was good, to push the Denison advantage up to 19-0 with 13:46 remaining in regulation.

The Gator offense would then come to life, with Lee opening the Gators' next drive with a 30-yard completion to Tyler Smith to bring the ball to the Denison 45.  Back-to-back completions to Nick Matic resulted in a first down at the 35, before Nick Deichler broke off a nine-yard run to the 26. Two plays later, Lee found a wide open Smith for a 20-yard touchdown pass, with Ben Ziolkowski's extra point making the score 19-7 with 9:30 left to play.

Denison then took the air out of the ball on its ensuing drive, using five minutes and 10 plays  on a 67-yard drive capped off with a 16-yard touchdown pass to Richard Wehman making the score 26-7 with 4:45 remaining.  Allegheny's next drive resulted in a turnover on downs, before the Big Red closed out the day's scoring with a Gabele touchdown pass with 20 seconds left in regulation.

Smith hauled in five passes for a game-high 77 yards, while John McFarland also added five catches for 38 yards.  Deichler ran for 38 yards to lead the Gator ground game, which was hampered by five sacks allowed for a loss of 33 yards.

The Gator defense turned in its strongest performance of the season, tallying four sacks – with two from Patrick, one by Aeschbacher, and a half apiece by Marcus Davenport and Jon Scroxton.  Nick Murgo posted a game-high 12 tackles, while Patrick totaled seven, including a career-high 3.5 for loss. 

Gabele accounted for 283 yards of offense to lead the Big Red, completing 17 passes for 143 yards, while running for 140 yards on 22 tries.  Dushawn Brown led Denison with six receptions for 66 yards, while Andrew Baird led the team with eight tackles, and Lars Soderberg with two sacks.

The Gators will return to action on Saturday, Oct. 31st, hosting Hiram at 5 p.m in Allegheny's final home game of the season.  Prior to the contest, the team's senior class will be recognized in an on-field ceremony for their careers in the Blue and Gold.