SPRINGFIELD, Ohio - The Wittenberg Tigers were unable to find the range offensively as Denison pulled out a key early season North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) road victory 49-36.

The Tigers shot just 23.6 percent from the field, including a 2-of-14 performance from three-point range. The 36 points were the lowest for Wittenberg since a 45-36 loss at Thomas More in December 2006.

Wittenberg trailed by as many as nine points in the first half but battled back to within one before Denison's Paige Williams knocked down a three-pointer with just 10 seconds remaining. The momentum carried over to the second half as Denison built a 15-point advantage after a three-pointer by MaryMargaret Habel at the 6:10 mark.

The Big Red didn't score again, but it turned out they didn't need to. The Tigers managed just two free throws by junior Heather Schroeder (Aurora, Ohio/Aurora) over the final six minutes as Denison held on for the victory.

Senior Amber Rice (South Charleston, Ohio/Southeastern) led the Tigers with 13 points and eight rebounds, while Schroeder added nine points and seven boards. No other Wittenberg player managed more than four points in the game.

The Tigers fell to 5-3 overall and 1-1 in the NCAC, heading into a 13-day break before Wittenberg's annual Charles B. Zimmerman Memorial Classic. Denison improved to 8-2 overall and 2-1 in the conference.