Westgate Reaches 1,000 Career Rebounds in Big Senior Day Victory

UPLAND, Ind. – Taylor's women's basketball team wrapped up its regular season on Saturday afternoon at home with an 81-61, wire-to-wire win over Bethel (6-22, 1-17 CL). TU then honored its seniors postgame for Senior Day following a contest that included Taylor Westgate grabbing her 1,000th career rebound, Ava Henson tallying a career-high 34 points and Hope Custer recording career highs of seven assists and four steals.

The anticipation in Odle Arena was high from the opening tip-off, with many fans holding pieces of paper with the number "1,000" plastered on them as the crowd silently counted down from six pertaining to the number of rebounds Westgate needed to land on the 1,000-rebound mark. The senior forward hauled in five early rebounds in the first quarter and needed just one more to reach quadruple digits.

Westgate grabbed a defensive rebound, her 1,000th, on the first possession of the second quarter before being serenaded by teammates and fans. The senior became just the third member of the 1,000-rebound club at Taylor, joining Natalie Steele ('98) and Kendall Bradbury ('19). All three members also have over 1,000 points in their storied careers. 

The second quarter continued to be good for Taylor, as the offense kicked into high-gear behind Henson's 13-point outburst in which she shot 4-for-5 from the field, including a perfect 3-for-3 from beyond the arc. The senior's point total at halftime read 22, with Custer also having an efficient half with 11 points as the Trojans took a 43-29 lead into the break.

The Pilots tightened the game to 56-46 late in the third quarter following treys on three consecutive possessions, but Henson and Quinn Kelly both made layups assisted by Custer to enter the fourth frame with a 60-47 advantage.

Henson had another quick flurry of five points to open the final quarter that raised her scoring output to a career-high 32 points, which she later increased to 34 to go along with four rebounds and three steals in the game. Custer, Westgate and Kelly also had strong fourth quarters in a dominant showing for the Trojans that resulted in a 20-point win.

Custer finished with 20 points to complement her career day. Westgate closed with 11 points and 15 rebounds to give the senior her 34th career double-double. Kelly added nine points off the bench with the aid of a corner triple late in the fourth period, and Claycee West knocked down one three-pointer and dished out four assists. As a team, the Trojans shot a season-high 53.3 percent from the field, including 45.5 percent from deep.

TU's seniors consisting of Custer, Henson, West, Westgate and current student-assistant coach Lauren Farb were all honored in a brief postgame ceremony. That group has combined to play in 393 games, make 250 starts and score 3,649 points in a Taylor uniform throughout their careers.

Taylor (12-16, 7-11 CL) moves on to the single-elimination Crossroads League Tournament as the seventh seed where it will play at No. 4 Indiana Wesleyan (25-3, 16-2) on Tuesday, Feb. 27, at 7 p.m.