Defensive Pressure and Timely Buckets Carry TU to Victory

MOUNT VERNON, Ohio – The Taylor women's basketball team (4-6, 1-1 CL) snapped a six-game losing streak Tuesday night with a gutsy 62-54 road victory against Mount Vernon Nazarene (5-2, 0-2).

Hope Custer was aggressive in going to the hoop throughout the first quarter, where she generated all nine of her first-quarter points with the aid of the foul line. Those drives from Custer, along with a swarming Trojan defense, helped put Taylor on top 13-11 at the conclusion of one frame.

TU's continued defensive pressure in the second quarter paired with just enough offensive production through back cuts and ball movement to pull the Trojans ahead 19-14 with three minutes remaining before halftime. A quick 9-0 run by the Cougars ensued, but Jillian Osswald drilled a buzzer-beating, top-of-the-key three to get Taylor within one at 23-22 at the break.  

Solid rebounding, five team steals and an advantage at the free-throw line kept TU in the game as a collective defensive battle took hold through two quarters of play.

Two separate 6-0 runs in the third quarter brought the Trojans ahead 40-37 with one quarter to play, as Taylor picked up its pace early and got forwards Quinn Kelly and Taylor Westgate going late to gain an advantage.

Ava Henson turned defense into offense multiple times in the fourth as TU got out in transition and started hitting jump shots with regularity as the Trojans led by as many as nine at 51-42. A small Cougar run followed to pull the home team to within four with under two minutes remaining, but Henson hit a clutch jumper moments later to force MVNU into playing the foul game. Henson and Claycee West then iced the game at the charity stripe to secure Taylor's first Crossroads League victory of the season.

Henson's explosion in the fourth quarter gave her a team-high 20 points on the night, while Custer and Osswald chipped in 11 points apiece. Westgate recorded 10 rebounds to lead the Trojans, with Custer right behind her at eight boards.

Defensively, Osswald's three steals fueled TU's excellent on-ball pressure throughout the game, with MVNU finishing its night at a 35.0 percent field goal clip. Despite making just two-of-14 attempts from three-point range themselves, the Trojans knocked down 14-16 free throws in what proved to be a deciding factor in the game.

Taylor is off through a Thanksgiving break before returning to action at home on Saturday, Dec. 2, to host No. 6 Marian (7-1, 2-0 CL) at 1 p.m.