Box Score
Ohio Wesleyan 14, Denison 13

Junior attacker Whit Stopak (North Canton/Hoover) scored twice during a 6-1 run that put Ohio Wesleyan ahead to stay, and the Bishops went on to defeat ninth-ranked Denison in the North Coast Athletic Conference West Division opener for both teams on Wednesday at Selby Stadium.

Denison had taken an 11-8 lead with a run of 4 straight goals, including scores by Camden Bowdy and Will Filiault just 8 seconds apart during the final minute of the third quarter.

Stopak swung the momentum back to Ohio Wesleyan by beating the third-quarter horn with a goal that brought the Bishops within 11-9, and senior attacker Will Anton (Madison, N.J.) followed with a score just over a minute into the fourth period before senior midfielder Conor McGeeney (Loveland/Archbishop Moeller) tallied an unassisted goal to knot the score at 11.

Nate Kay answered with a goal less than a minute later for a 12-11 Denison lead, but the Bishops countered with goals by junior attacker Henry Hasenberg (Los Angeles, Calif./Loyola) and senior midfielder Max Johnston (Perrysburg/St. Francis DeSales) midway through the period to go up, 13-12.

Stopak closed out the Ohio Wesleyan run with a goal with 4:21 remaining in regulation time.

The visitors closed to within 14-13 on Sam Asman's goal with :55 remaining, but senior defenseman Austin Plaster (Alexandria, Va./Episcopal) won the ensuing face-off and Ohio Wesleyan was able to run out the clock.

Stopak put the Bishops on the scoreboard just over a minute into the game, and junior midfielder Brody Leinson (Littleton, Mass.) followed with a goal for an early 2-0 Ohio Wesleyan lead, but Denison scored the final 5 goals of the quarter, including a pair just 6 seconds apart during the final minute of the period.

Ohio Wesleyan stormed back to even the game at 5 on a score by junior midfielder Jack Damon (Portsmouth, R.I.), and the teams traded goals during the final minute of the half, with Denison taking the lead on Luke Fisher's man-up goal with :56 left only to see McGeeney score with :05 remaining for a 6-6 tie at the intermission.

McGeeney and Anton had goals that helped Ohio Wesleyan take an 8-7 lead early in the third, but Denison reeled off the next 4 goals, including a pair of man-up scores, to take the 11-8 lead.

Stopak and McGeeney scored 3 goals apiece for Ohio Wesleyan.  Anton added 2 goals and Hasenberg contributed a goal and 2 assists.

Senior Zach Brasser (Westport, Conn./Millbrook (N.Y.) School) had 9 saves in the Ohio Wesleyan goal.

Asman and Fisher each scored twice for Denison.  Reeves McKenney collected 8 saves for the Big Red.

It was the first time since 1961 that Ohio Wesleyan played Denison in its second game of the season.  The Bishops defeated the Big Red by a count of 10-4 on April 15, 1961, at South Field.

Box Score