Baumann lifts Fairfield in crunch time

OSKALOOSA ? Sidney Baumann sank two clutch free throws with 12 seconds remaining to break a 40-40 tie and Fairfield held on in the frantic final moments.

Oskaloosa (0-2) made it to the free throw line and also had a final-second heave, but neither was enough as Fairfield (1-1) picked up its first win of the season with a 42-41 win on the road Monday night.

The Trojans fell behind by as many as 11 points mid-way through the second quarter and trailed at halftime before storming back in the third quarter to take a 5-point lead. The Indians took one final lead, 39-38, before Baumann answered with a 15-foot jumper with 1:36 to play.

?It was a lot of guts and heart, especially when Osky took that lead back late,? said Fairfield head coach Billy Strickler.

Baumann hit the late free throws following an offensive rebound off a teammate?s miss. And after Fairfield took the 42-40 lead, MaKena Veldhuizen hit 1-of-2 free throws for Oskaloosa with six seconds remaining, but the second miss was tipped out of bounds to keep the ball in the Indians? possession.

The two teams swapped turnovers trying to inbound the ball to set up Oskaloosa?s final possession with 0.7 seconds left, which came up empty. Veldhuizen led the Indians with a game-high 17 points.

From the 11-point deficit in the first half, Fairfield went on an 8-0 run to close the gap before taking a 14-7 advantage through the third quarter.

?It all started on defense ? just great man defense minus the first quarter,? Strickler said. ?We stopped letting the ball get into the post and did a good job of stepping in front of girls going to the basket.?

Fairfield also won a barn-burner vs. the Indians last year as it took a lead with under a minute to go before winning 52-49.

Monday, the Trojans put up a whopping 63 field goal attempts thanks to 14 turnovers ? a number that is down after averaging nearly 18 per game last year.

Serena Ward led Fairfield with 15 points followed by Baumann with 10 and Taylor Neil with six. Erin Thompson scored four points to go along with a team-high nine rebounds.

The Trojans will open Southeast Conference play Friday night with a visit from Mount Pleasant before traveling to Ottumwa Saturday afternoon.