HUNTINGTON, Ind. – Jillian Osswald drove the Trojans to their fourth-straight win on Wednesday evening, when she shot a perfect 10-10 from the free-throw line in the fourth quarter alone en route to a 77-73 TU victory over Huntington (9-15, 4-10 CL).
As a team, Taylor shot a remarkable 16-17 from the charity stripe in the final period of play, fueling a 29-point quarter to flip the script on a hopeful Huntington squad.
Huntington scored the first six points of the game behind an aggressive display of basketball. The Foresters persisted in their defensive pressure throughout the first half, forcing 11 TU turnovers that resulted in 11 points on the other end for Huntington.
At the half, Huntington led, 36-29, as Taylor shot just 5-15 as a team in the second quarter. Claycee West led the Trojan response in the third, however, posting 11 of her game-high 22 points while the Trojans cut the Huntington lead to two.
Osswald then commanded the game from the free-throw line down the stretch, embodying a calm posture while sinking 10-consecutive shots at the line.
TU has now made 10-or-more free throws in four-straight games, shooting nearly 77.0 percent throughout its four-game win streak.
West, meanwhile, has scored 20-or-more points in three of her last six performances, all the while adding six assists, five steals, and three boards in Wednesday's win at Huntington.
Dating back to last season, Trojan forward, Taylor Westgate, had scored double-digit points in 24-consecutive games, an impressive streak that ended with a nine-point and 14-rebound performance against the Foresters.
10 of Westgate's rebounds came in the decisive second half for Taylor, in which TU outrebounded Huntington 17-10 while also committing two fewer turnovers than the Foresters.
Ball control and capitalizing at the free-throw line served as the magic ingredients for Taylor in its significant second-half comeback win over Huntington. With its latest win, Taylor maintains a hold on sole possession of fourth place in the Crossroads League standings, now just two games behind Grace for third.
Taylor (15-9, 8-6 CL) and RV Grace (17-7, 10-4 CL) are set to square off at 1:00 pm this Saturday, February 4, in Winona Lake, where Westgate will have the opportunity to eclipse 1,000-career points in a Trojan uniform. The Marion, Indiana, native currently sits at 984-career points, just 16 away from the 1,000-career-point milestone.
