The Goshen College women’s basketball team got rolling early but had to survive a late push to hold off the hosting Trojans of Taylor University on Saturday afternoon. The Leafs led by 28 points early in the final quarter before Taylor charged back to cut the deficit to nine before time ran out and Goshen secured a 70-61 victory.
The Leafs were able to outscore Taylor in each of the first two quarters to take a 33-22 lead into the half. Goshen continued to roll in the second half and ended the third quarter with a 23-point lead which climbed to 28 points early in the fourth before Taylor stormed back, outscoring the Leafs 29-15 in the game’s last quarter.On offense, Goshen was led by Sydney Stein, a sophomore, who scored a team-high 19 points for the Leafs. Lynnia Noel, a senior, and Gabby Williams, a senior, were the only other Leafs to score in double figures, totaling 18 and 11 points respectively. Sophia Sears, a senior, and Angela Mclean, a senior, added seven and six points, as well as Haley Archibeque, a sophomore, Caitlyn O’Neal, a junior, and Calla Bartlett, a senior, each chipping in three points apiece.
Sears had a team-leading four assists with Noel and Carly O’Neal, a junior, each adding two. Noel also recorded a team-high 13 rebounds, with Williams adding eight rebounds and recording the Leafs’ only block of the game.
The win over Taylor improved Goshen’s record to 11-9 (5-3 in conference) on the season. The Leafs hosted Huntington University on Wednesday night, but the game was completed after print deadline. Goshen will be in action again on Saturday afternoon when they host fifth-ranked Marian University. The game is scheduled to begin at 1:00 p.m.
