![Trojans Hold Off Bethel for Road Victory](/images/2014-15/WomenBasketball/Freds_USF.jpg)
Trojans Hold Off Bethel for Road Victory
MISHAWAKA, Ind. - Kelci Freds scored a game-high 20 points and Monica Compton added 11 points and ten rebounds to lead the Taylor women's basketball team to a 60-54 victory at Bethel on Wednesday night.
Taylor (12-17, 7-10) led by as many as 17 in the second half but TU held off a late Bethel rally to secure its third win in the last four games. Taylor pushed its lead to 47-30 when sophomore Taylor Degenkolb knocked down a 3-pointer with 11:10 to play but the Trojans went cold from the floor and Bethel began chipping away at the TU lead. The Pilots capped off a 17-2 run when Rachel Jennings connected from beyond the arc to slice the Taylor lead to 49-47 with 4:43 to play but Freds stopped the run with her sixth triple of the night to push Taylor's lead back to five and allow Taylor to keep the Pilots at bay.
Bethel (12-17, 7-10) jumped out to a 7-2 lead before Freds connected on a pair of 3-pointers to pull the Trojans even a 10-10 seven minutes into the game. The Trojans pushed their lead to 24-18 on a pair of Freds free throws late in the half and headed to the locker room with a 29=23 lead.
Led by a 6-for-8 performance by Freds the Trojans shot 9-for-18 from deep while Bethel finished 9-for-36 (25.0 percent) from 3-point range. While the Trojans proved more efficient on the perimeter, they were simply dominant in the paint as Taylor outrebounded the Pilots 49-24 and scored 14 points in the paint.
Senior guard Kelsey Bryant tied her career high with 13 rebounds while Compton recorded her first career double-double with 11 points and ten rebounds for Taylor. Emma Brattain orchestrated the TU attack with five assists.
Bethel got 18 points from Jennings and Angelique Moore added 11 points for the Pilots who were held to 32.7 percent (18-55) from the floor and committed nine turnovers that led to 16 TU points.
With the win Taylor moves into a tie with Bethel for sixth place in the Crossroads League standings with a league record of 7-10. The Trojans will wrap up the regular season in Odle Arena on Saturday as Taylor hosts No. 20 Huntington at 1:00 pm on Taylor's senior day.