OBERLIN, Ohio - After seizing the first set, Oberlin College volleyball were outlasted by the Denison University Big Red on Wednesday night.

First-year Lexi Mitchell's game-high 18 kills weren't enough to lift the Yeowomen past the Big Red as the Fort Mill, South Carolina native extended her season total to a team-best 258. Mitchell finished with a double-double, notching a team-high 14 digs in the loss.

Behind Mitchell, sophomore libero Emily Kelker tallied 12 digs, followed by Samantha Lam who collected ten.

While Mitchell was the lone Yeowomen to hit in double-figures, Maggie Middleton has a stellar performance against the Big Red, hitting .438 with 8 kills. Middleton was active at the net as well finishing with three total blocks, one solo. Senior Ave Spencer also posted nine kills in the loss along with eight digs.

All-time assist leader Meredith Leung was the focal point of the setup with 18 assists, followed by Lam with 11 and Sara Chang with nine.

The Crimson and Gold and Big Red traded the lead over halfway through the first set before the Yeowomen pushed out in front. Locked at 17-17, the Yeowomen took the next five points to move ahead, 22-17 and that proved to be the difference maker. Oberlin closed the set, 25-20, but the Big Red charged back. 

Denison dominated the second set, handing the Yeowomen a 14-25 defeat. The third would go to Denison, but the Yeowomen got their rhythm back. After trading blows throughout the third frame, Big Red edged out a 25-22 win to capture a one-set advantage.

To close Wednesday night's bout, the Big Red earn a 25-18 triumph in the fourth.

The loss move the Yeowomen to 7-15 overall and holds them at 1-6 in league play.

Next up, Oberlin volleyball will welcome two top-25 teams to Philips Gymnasium for the regular season finale on Saturday, October 29.

The Yeowomen will entertain #3 Wittenberg University before tussling with the #21 ranked Carnegie Mellon in the finale.

First serve between the league-leading Tigers and the Yeowomen is slated for 1 p.m. followed by the battle of top-25's as Wittenberg and Carnegie Mellon square off at 3 p.m. Oberlin concludes the day's action at 5 p.m. with a matchup against the Tartans.