Trojans Struggle from the Field in Road Loss

TAKOMA PARK, Md. – A difficult shooting game saw the Trojans pick up their first loss 81-71 on Friday against Washington Adventist (2-1).

Taylor shot under 36 percent from the field, including a paltry 20 percent from beyond the arc in a physical contest. The squads combined for 54 fouls and 77 free throw attempts with the flow of the game disjointed by the abundance of stoppages.

The Trojans were unable to take advantage of 42 free throws, making just 27 with four of the six players who reached the charity strip missing two or more.

Pete Combs continued his strong play, leading the team with 17 points and ten rebounds. The junior forward began the game brightly with the first five points of the contest.

Washington Adventist responded with the next 11 points and slowly built the lead up to 15 with TU turning it over and missing too many shots in the first half.

Taylor scored 12 points in the final four minutes before halftime to trim the lead to 40-32 heading into the locker and giving TU some momentum heading into the second half.

The Shock kept the lead near double digits as the teams traded points in the early portion of the second half ad eventually held a 50-39 advantage.

TU's defense stood tall the next four minutes and held WAU to one point as Carson Gould hit a three and Combs had an and-one dunk to cut the lead to five. Nathan Baker and Anor Wogar converted put backs to cut the deficit to one. Baker put up seven points and grabbed seven boards off the bench for TU.

After falling behind by five Nate Paarlberg scored before a triple by Wogar knotted the game for the first time since three minutes into the action. Taylor stayed close and an Anthony McGhee shot from downtown gave the Trojans a 60-59 lead. McGhee tallied 11 points, three assists and a steal in the defeat.

The offense hit a wall, scoring a pair of points in the next five minutes to allow the home team to take a commanding 11-point lead enroute to victory over Taylor.

Taylor (2-1) looks to bounce back from its first setback of the season with another matchup in Takoma Park, Maryland on Saturday, November 8, against Mid-Atlantic Christian (2-1), with tip set for 6:30 pm.