ST. PETERSBURG, FLA. (Dec. 29) — Despite a valiant effort, the Denison University women's basketball team suffered a narrow 66-64 loss to sixth-ranked Bowdoin College in Sunday action at the St. Pete Classic in Florida.

The loss drops the Big Red to 7-4 overall. The Polar Bears stay unbeaten as they improve to 9-0. 

Three members of the Big Red scored in double figures. Sophomore guard Violet Mitchell led the way with a team-high 19 points on an efficient 7-of-11 shooting effort. 

Fellow classmate, Adelyn Moore, posted her first double double effort, finishing with 15 points and 10 rebounds. 

Sophomore guard Abby Cooch filled the stat sheet with 12 points, eight rebounds, five assists and three steals. 

The closely contested game was reflected on the stat sheet. Bowdoin shot 44 percent compared to 42 percent for Denison. The Big Red made eight three-point shots compared to six for the Polar Bears. Both teams pulled down 34 rebounds. 

The two teams exchanged scores and battled through a competitive opening quarter. The Big Red and Polar Bears were even at 12-12 after 10 minutes of play. 

Denison put together a strong effort in the second quarter to surge into the lead. The Big Red made 60 percent of its field goal attempts and drained 4-of-7 three-point attempts in the quarter. Denison used an 8-0 run to take a 25-19 advantage following a three-point play by Cooch at the 6:20 mark. The Big Red continued to hold the lead for the remainder of the quarter. A late triple by senior Maddie Goodman made it an eight-point halftime lead for Denison at 38-30. 

The Big Red led by multiple scores for the vast majority of the third quarter. A triple by Mitchell strengthened the lead to 51-43 at the 3:09 mark. However, the Polar Bears cut that lead in half by the end of the third. A three point play on Bowdoin's final possession of the quarter trimmed the Big Red lead to 53-49 entering the fourth. 

Denison led for nearly 24 minutes and seemed poised for a massive win over a ranked opponent. However, Bowdoin chipped away and was able to do just enough late to pull out the victory. A large factor in that was the defensive work to limit Denison to 11 points over the final 10 minutes. 

The Polar Bears used a 9-2 run over the first four-plus minutes of the fourth to build a 58-55 advantage. Denison never could regain the lead. A pair of free throws by Moore tied the score at 64 all with 44 seconds left. 

Bowdoin was able to secure an offensive rebound after an initial miss and scored the eventual winning points on a layup by Sydney Jones with 13 seconds left. Denison's last second shot missed its mark. 

Jones led Bowdoin with a game high 20 points. 

Up Next: Denison returns to action when they face another ranked foe in #23 Johns Hopkins on Monday morning in Florida. Tip off is scheduled for 11 a.m.