GRANVILLE, Ohio – In the squad's regular season finale, Allegheny was unable to hang onto a first half lead as the Denison Big Red used a decisive second half-opening run to upend the Gators, 76-66, on Saturday at Livingston Gymnasium.

Five Gators finished with double-digits, led by 16 points from sophomore Meaghan Wilby.  Wilby shot 6-of-12 from the field, adding a team-high four three-pointers, tacking on five rebounds.  Junior Jessica Mrdjenovich scored 11 points, as seniors Kendall Hoffman, Marina Scarantino and third year Emma Pellicano tacked on 10 points each.  Hoffman added a team-high six rebounds, while Scarantino and Mrdjenovich each logged a team-high five assists.

Denison scored the game's first bucket 45 seconds into the first half, but Allegheny grabbed momentum with a 7-2 run, taking a 7-4 advantage with 16:09 left in the opening stanza.  The Gators continued to slowly bolster their lead, holding a nine-point, 27-18 lead after a layup by sophomore Meaghan Wilby before a three-pointer by Mrdjenovich gave Allegheny its first double-digit lead of the contest, 30-18, capping a near-five minute, 11-4 run for the Blue and Gold.

The Allegheny guards erupted to close out the half, as the Gator guards went 7-of-8 from beyond the arc during the opening stanza, led by Pellicano, who buried a pair of three-pointers while Vigliotti, Scarantino, Mrdjenovich and Wilby additionally scored buckets from three-point range for the Gators.  A buzzer-beating layup by Mrdjenovich gave the Gators a 41-29 lead heading into halftime.

The Big Red erupted for a 14-3 run to open the half, closing the gap and taking the lead with just over 12 minutes remaining in the half, as Allegheny was unable to score until the 11:31 mark, when Wilby buried a three-pointer to bring the Gators to a within one point of the Denison advantage.  The Big Red regained momentum with a 13-0 run, taking a 57-44 lead wth 7:14 remaining in the second half. 

Allegheny would make one final attempt at the Denison lead as a Hoffman layups kept the squad within striking distance, but Denison shot 10-of-14 over the final 2:45 to seal the win.

The Gators will next advance to the NCAC Tournament, where the Gators will travel to a currently undetermined opponent for a Tuesday night quarterfinal.  The time and location of this contest will be determined after Sunday's 1 p.m. contest between Oberlin and Wittenberg.