Trojans fight to finish against tough Lady Dutch squad

FAIRFIELD — Tuesday night gave the Fairfield girls basketball team an opportunity to show what it was made of, and although the Trojans didn’t pull out a win, they showed once again that they could hang with stiff competition.

A talented Pella squad had to scrap all night long to upend the Trojans, but they did, as the Lady Dutch nipped Fairfield 56-51.

“Our kids battled hard,” said Fairfield head coach Pat Pacha. “We were in the game the entire game.”

The Trojans looked good early. A disciplined Fairfield offense worked its way to a halftime lead, as the home squad held a 13-7 first quarter advantage and led 24-21 into the locker room.

Delaney Breen had it working early. She scored 12 points in the first half to lead the Trojans to their halftime advantage.

The Lady Dutch punched back hard in the third quarter. Pella used a handful of fast break baskets to steal the lead, and Fairfield had its only single-digit output of any quarter, scoring just nine points.

Heading into the fourth quarter, Pella led 38-33.

“We kind of got hurt in transition defense in the third quarter,” Pacha said. “I thought that was kind of the turning point of the game.”

The Trojans didn’t go down easy, though. Fairfield rallied back to tie the game in the fourth on a 3-pointer by Danielle Breen, knotting the game at 44-44 with just under four minutes left.

“We're senior dominated, so that's what we expect out of those kids,” Pacha said. “They've been through the battles.”

The Trojans couldn’t overtake the Lady Dutch again, however. Pella led by three points in the final seconds and a pair of free throws at the end iced the game.

Danielle Breen scored 20 points to lead Fairfield. Delaney had 14. Kelsey Pacha and Mallory Lyon scored six apiece. Brynley Allison finished with three, and Anna Dunlap scored two.