Drew Homyk (#37) and Joe Ulrey (#44) held off the Gators down the stretch, helping Denison defeat Allegheny for the first time since 1986.

Jon Berg (Washington, Pa./Trinity) rushed for 145 yards off 24 carries and gave the Big Red the lead with a 1-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter, rallying Denison past Allegheny 13-10 in front of a large homecoming crowd at Deeds Field-Piper Stadium.

The victory was the first by a Denison team against Allegheny College since 1986.  It also snapped a 19-game winning streak by the Gators against the Big Red.

With the score knotted at 7-7 at halftime, the Gators' second possession of the third quarter would result in a scoring drive thanks to a 38-yard completion by T.J. Salopek to wide receiver Jake Vite that got the Gators down to the Denison 35-yard line.  That would lead to a 47-yard field goal by Ryan Zipf, giving the Gators a 10-7 lead with 6:48 left in the third quarter.

After a forced three-and-out by the Allegheny defense the Gator offense took over on their own 23-yard line and began to march down the field.  They moved all the way to the Denison 32-yard line where Salopek's third down pass attempt was tipped at the line and intercepted by a diving JD Pisula (Westerville, Ohio/Westerville Central) as the third quarter expired.

Denison took over in their own territory where Mike Barnes (Gates Mills, Ohio/Mayfield) found Brandon Taylor (Cincinnati, Ohio/Anderson) for an 11-yard gain.  Berg would follow with a 16-yard run up the middle that got the Big Red to the Allegheny 35-yard line. On second and 11 Barnes would find senior wide receiver Peter Jarowey (Newton, Mass./Newton South) on a deep fade on the near side of the field.  Jarowey would be forced out at the two-yard line and two plays later Berg gave Denison the lead for good on his 1-yard plunge.

The Gators took over with 10:08 remaining and moved the ball all the way to the Denison 24-yard line where sophomore cornerback Tyler Lambert (Ranger, Ga./Gordon Central) came up with a key pass break-up on third and three forcing the Gators to attempt a 42-yard field goal that would end up wide right.

Denison's ensuing drive would be ended after five plays and 3:04 ticked off the clock, giving Allegheny a second chance at either tying the game or taking the lead.  Once again, the Denison defense proved up to the challenge.

Another Salopek to Vite pass would get the Gators to midfield but the Denison pass rush, led by Josh Hamperian (Lexington, Ky./Lafayette), Bert Bathiany (Ft. Thomas, Ky./Highlands) and Joe Ulrey (Marengo, Ohio/Highland) would turn up the pressure on Salopek, forcing three straight incompletions and a loss of possession on downs, locking up the win for the Big Red.

The defensive stars were many for Denison.  Junior safety Drew Homyk (Chicago, Ill./St. Ignatius Prep) made plays all over the field.  He led the team with 11 tackles, forced one fumble and broke-up two passes.  His first pass break-up forced an Allegheny turnover on a critical fourth down and his second helped thwart the Gator's potential go-ahead drive in the fourth quarter.  Senior linebacker Jim Minor (Washington, Pa./Trinity) followed with nine tackles and Bathiany added eight stops.

Berg paced the Denison offense with his 24-carry, 145 yard day.  It was the sixth 100-yard rushing day of his career and in the second quarter he surpassed the 2,000 career rushing yardage milestone.  In four years at Denison he has amassed 2,063 yards rushing and 18 touchdowns.  Junior Nick Krempasky (San Clemente, Calif./San Clemente) followed Berg with 14 carries for 48 yards.

Barnes was 10-for-16 in the passing department for 99 yards.  Jarowey was his favorite target.  He caught five passes for 70 yards.

The Gators out gained DU 337-295 but the Big Red held a big advantage in time of possession (+10 minutes). 

The win moves Denison's record to 3-3 overall and 2-2 in the North Coast Athletic Conference.  They will host the University of Chicago next Saturday at 1 p.m. before returning to NCAC action on Nov. 1 at Wittenberg University.