TU Falls to No. 7 Rio Grande in Fast-Paced Affair

RIO GRANDE, Ohio. – The Taylor women's basketball team (3-3) was defeated 93-70 to open play at the Bevo Francis Classic against host-No. 7 Rio Grande (3-0) Friday evening.

TU kept pace with Rio through one quarter of play, trailing by just two points at 19-17 heading to the second period. Taylor Westgate's strong start – the senior had a double-double by halftime – and the Trojans' ability to draw fouls and make their free throws kept Taylor in the game early on.

The Red Storm offense, which entered play on Friday ranked fourth in the NAIA with 107.5 points per game, picked up the pace in the second quarter, however, draining six three-pointers and hitting mid-range jumpers from all over the court to go into halftime with a 51-36 lead.

Ava Henson and the Trojans were able to get out in transition a few times midway through the third quarter to cut the deficit to 64-53, but Rio caught fire again to close the period on a 14-0 run to essentially put the game away.

Taylor had a nice game of its own offensively, scoring 17-plus points in all four quarters. TU's 47.5 shooting percentage from the field was the best number it had posted this season, and it produced 20 assists as a team. The turnover differential prevented the overall game from being much closer, as the Red Storm committed only six turnovers compared to 17 Taylor giveaways.

Individually, Henson tallied a game-high and season-high 20 points, while Westgate and Jillian Osswald scored 13 and 11 points, respectively. Westgate also finished with a game-high 12 rebounds. All seven Trojans who played at least five minutes in the contest recorded two or more assists, led by Osswald's five dimes.

TU stays in Rio Grande, Ohio, on Saturday to play Saint Mary-of-the-Woods (2-1) at 11 a.m.