Game Leaders
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Turnovers
Time of Poss.
GRANVILLE, Ohio (Sept. 21) -- A pair of second half touchdown runs by junior Cade Nowik lifted the Denison University football team to a 14-0 victory over visiting Kenyon College in the North Coast Athletic Conference opener Saturday afternoon at Deeds Field – Piper Stadium.
Nowik ripped off a 23-yard touchdown run in the third quarter to cap a seven-play, 73-yard scoring drive that accounted for the game's first points. Daniel Cunningham tacked on the point after to make it 7-0 Denison at the 6:04 mark of the third.
Denison put the game on ice with a late scoring drive, which was fueled in large part by its running game. Thanks in large part to a defensive stand that forced a turnover on downs, Denison took over offensively at the Kenyon 32-yard line. Four consecutive runs helped Denison find the end zone. Trey Fabrocini rushed 25 yards on the opening play to give the Big Red a first and goal. Three plays later, Nowik finished off the drive with a three-yard run on third and goal. The Cunningham PAT made it 14-0 with 1:21 to play.
Neither team could gain much offensive traction during a scoreless first half. The two teams combined to punt six times in the opening quarter.
Setup with good field position to start its drive, Denison pushed into Kenyon territory midway through the second quarter. The Big Red faced a third-and-four at the Kenyon 25-yard line before back-to-back sacks ended the drive. The Owls had a chance to get on the board on their ensuing drive, as they had first and 10 at the Denison 30. They eventually had to settle for a 45-yard field goal attempt, which had enough distance but missed wide right.
The two teams combined for just 349 yards in what was a frustrating offensive day for both teams. Each team finished with 13 first downs. The two defenses combined for nine sacks in the game.
Denison was stout defensively, as they limited Kenyon to just 113 yards of total offense. The Owls completed just 10 of 37 passes for 81 yards through the air. Kenyon only mustered 32 yards rushing on 28 carries (1.1 per carry). The Owls converted just 2-of-16 attempts on third down.
Trey Fabrocini eclipsed the 100-yard mark for a 19th time in his Denison career.
Quarterback Tyler Green completed 14-of-22 passes for 112 yards. Nowik, who appeared at quarterback on occasion, did his work on the ground. Nowik rushed for 28 yards and three carries. Two of his three rushes went for touchdowns.
Defensively, Reuben Perin was disruptive in the backfield with 3.5 tackles for loss and 1.5 sacks. His linemate, Shawn Ugbana, finished with six tackles, three of which went for loss and a sack. Layton Reesor had a team-high eight tackles in the victory.
Denison welcomes Hiram for its third-straight home game on Sept. 28. Kickoff is scheduled for 1 p.m.