![Trojans Surge to Win Over Visiting Spring Arbor](/images/2022-23/WomenBasketball/West_Marian.jpg)
Trojans Surge to Win Over Visiting Spring Arbor
UPLAND, Ind. – Looking to snap a two-game slide, the Taylor women's basketball team shook off an early 10-point deficit to Spring Arbor and dominated the final three quarters of an 84-70 victory inside Odle Arena on Saturday afternoon.
Taylor rode the its starting five, who accounted for 79-of-84 points for TU in the game. All five starters scored in double figures, led by Claycee West, who returned to the lineup and nearly posted a triple-double with 22 points, nine assists, seven rebounds and three steals. The junior guard matched or posted new career-highs in points, assists and steals, while missing her top rebound total by one.
West had plenty of help in the box score, as Gretchen Moll posted a 16-point, 10-rebound double-double and Ava Henson added 15 points, eight assists and three steals. Ariel Dale also played well in the backcourt with 12 points and four assists, with Taylor Westgate chipping in 14 points and eight boards.
Taylor shot just 31.3 percent in the opening quarter, but shot at least 47.4 percent in each of the final three frames, ending the game at 45.1 percent overall and 43.5 percent from beyond the arc.
The game turned in the second quarter, with the Trojans using a 19-2 spurt to turn a 24-14 deficit into a 33-26 cushion. TU hit seven-of-nine field goals in that stretch, including five triples and assisted on each of the final five buckets in the run.
West was crucial during the game-changing stretch, knocking in a pair of treys and adding assists on two more to play a role in 12 of Taylor's 19 points.
After SAU (13-6, 3-6 CL) rallied to draw even at the break, TU took the lead for good by scoring the first nine points of the third quarter. The 9-0 run extended an overall blitz of 32-13 in favor of the Trojans.
Taylor continued to build its lead, using two more connections from West to Moll to push the gap to 13, before five points from West widened the margin to 16.
The Trojans rolled from there, holding a lead of as many as 18 deep into the fourth quarter, before settling on the final spread of 14.
Taylor (11-8, 4-5 CL) will begin the second half of its Crossroads League slate on Wednesday, when it heads to Mount Vernon Nazarene (10-9, 5-4 CL) for a 6:00 pm tip.