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Ohio Wesleyan 1, Denison 0
Oct. 10, 2008
![[ T.J. Trigg ]](../images/trigg.jpg)
Senior back T.J. Trigg (Westerville/North) converted a direct kick for the game's only goal as Ohio Wesleyan defeated Denison for a hard-fought North Coast Athletic Conference win on Friday at Roy Rike Field.
Scoring chances were not plentiful during the physical first half of play. Ohio Wesleyan had 8 shots during the period, with 2 of those on goal. Denison, meanwhile, took 5 shots, of which none were on goal.
The Big Red manufactured the first good chance of the second half when Len Mills got a look from inside the Ohio Wesleyan penalty area, but Bishop keeper Richard Ott (Norwalk) blocked the shot and the Ohio Wesleyan defense cleared the ball over the end line, then broke up the ensuing corner kick.
Freshman forward Matt Bonfini (Dublin/Coffman) worked loose for a shot from the left side just over a minute later, but Denison keeper Kevin Donahue was there for the save.
Ohio Wesleyan had a golden opportunity in the 59th minute when Donahue strayed outside the penalty area on a punt, with the resulting hand ball call giving the Bishops a free kick from just beyond the top of the box, but sophomore forward Tyler Wall (Columbus/Upper Arlington) had his shot blocked by the Big Red line.
Wall was denied again in the 65th minute, this time by Donahue on a shot from the left side, and Wall would figure in the Bishops' next scoring chance as well.
In the 67th minute, Bonfini flicked the ball ahead to Wall, who was off on a breakaway against Donahue. Denison defender Drew Lash tackled Wall from behind and was assessed a red card, and on the ensuing free kick, Trigg found the back of the Big Red goal for a 1-0 Bishop lead with 23:44 left in regulation time.
The Denison defense kept the game close once, with Donahue grabbing a shot by junior back Matt Giannetti (Montclair, N.J.) after a Bishop corner kick, and dodged a bullet another time when junior forward Sam Striler (St. Louis, Mo./Country Day) took a centering pass from freshman forward Taylor Kiefer (North Canton/Hoover) and had an open look but sent his shot over the crossbar.
Denison's best chance of the second half came in the 85th minute when the Bishop defense missed a clearing attempt, leaving Mills with an open look at the Ohio Wesleyan goal, but Ott grabbed the shot at the left post to preserve the shutout.
Ohio Wesleyan outshot Denison, 23-11. Ott finished with 2 saves for the Bishops, while Donahue had 5 saves for the Big Red.