Trojans’ brilliant season ends

A group of young men who helped rekindle the Trojan spirit in Fairfield boys' basketball ended their careers Monday night in Mt. Pleasant when Oskaloosa won the Class 3A substate 5 final 58-37 to advance to the state tournament in Des Moines.

'This team had a very special season and did a lot of very special things,” boasted the Trojans proud head coach Mick Flattery. 'We will miss them greatly and wish them the best of luck in their future endeavors. Great, great memories. 8-0 in the SEC was fabulous; 18 wins in one season was phenomenal!”

The game

Both teams struggled to score in the first period and the Indians led the Trojans 10-6 after eight minutes of play.

Oskaloosa's 7'0 junior Xavier Foster started the second quarter with a breakaway dunk, but Fairfield senior Austin Simpson scored right away to bring it back to 12-8 and give the Orange and Black some peace of mind that things wouldn't get out of hand.

Unfortunately, the Trojans needed a timeout with 6:37 remaining in the first half and Oskaloosa on a 6-0 run. After Simpson swatted an attempted take to the rim by the Indians, Osky was able to bucket three more baskets and force Flattery to stop the clock again with 5:06 in the second and the Indians holding a 22-8 advantage.

Senior Carson Crile hit a 3-point attempt with 4:06 in the period, followed by a forced turnover by Fairfield, giving Trojan Nation some hope with the ball and a chance to make a run with almost four minutes left in the first half. Just :39 later, Simpson received his third personal foul and had to sit down and the only four points scored by Fairfield over the next three minutes were on a Crile layup and a pair of free throws by classmate Collin Breen with 12.1 remaining that left the halftime tally at 33-15 in favor of Oskaloosa.

No quit

Crile hit another 3-pointer and a Simpson putback made it 33-20 with the Trojans refusing to yield the bracket with two quarters to play. Even when the Indians answered back with their own mini 5-0 run, Fairfield got an offensive rebound and lay in from senior Tristin Waugh and then with Breen defending the inbounds pass, the Trojans forced a five-second call that rejuvenated the crowd. After Crile cut the score to 38-24 with a drive from the perimeter to the rim, Osky hit a jumper and then collected three points on an and-1 play that pushed their lead back to 19.

One shining moment

With Breen fouled out and the majority of the seniors subbed out during the final moments, senior reserve guard Brittan Bowman hit a buzzer-beater that ended the season on a fun note and put a smile on the saddened face of Trojan Nation as they trekked home.

'I shot it right on the half court line,” explained the future Cyclone. 'I knew it was going in the moment I let it fly. I actually for fun would shoot half court shots everyday before practice, and it really feels good to end my career like that. Even though it was short lived I loved the way it ended and will never forget it.”

Stats

Carson Crile 15 points and eight rebounds; Cole Engle seven points and two rebounds 'Great job attacking the basket by Cole.” -Flattery; Collin Breen four points; Austin Simpson four points and six rebounds; Tristin Waugh four points and seven rebounds; Brittan Bowman three points 'This is a shot he practices daily so does not surprise us he was going to make one.” -Flattery.

Fairfield finished the season 18-4 overall with an unblemished 8-0 record in Southeast Conference play and a 9-0 record against SEC teams if you count the playoffs.

'We want to thank our student body and community for your support throughout the tournament,” said Flattery. 'To look across the court and to see all of that black coming out to cheer on the program, we are so appreciative.

Trojan pride

'The locker room started out sad and quiet,” described Bowman. 'But coach started talking, talking about how us seniors have changed the face of this program and will be remembered for it. The people of Fairfield didn't just show up because we were winning. They showed up because we are the kind hearted, dedicated, and hardworking kids they saw grow from our freshman to our senior year.”

Hardly feels like a loss.