In their most impressive performance of the season, the Fairfield girls erased a 13-point halftime deficit to defeat Mount Pleasant 47-43 on Friday night, January 9th, securing their first conference victory of the season. The comeback was fueled by outstanding offensive execution and lockdown defense in the second half.
A Tale of Two Halves
Mount Pleasant controlled the first half, leading 11-6 after the first quarter and building a commanding 26-13 advantage by halftime. The Trojans struggled to find their rhythm offensively, unable to buy a basket through the first 16 minutes.
The first half was also a tale of two quarters at the free-throw line. Fairfield reached the bonus in the first quarter and attempted 10 free throws compared to Mount Pleasant’s four. The Trojans converted 4-10 while the Panthers went 2-4. However, the script flipped dramatically in the second quarter. Mount Pleasant attempted an astounding 19 free throws in the second quarter alone, converting 10-19, while Fairfield went just 2-2. Remarkably, 10 of Mount Pleasant’s 15 second-quarter points came from the charity stripe.
Then everything changed.
Fairfield came out of the locker room with renewed energy and purpose, dominating the third quarter 15-4 to cut the deficit to just 30-28 heading into the final period. The Trojans completed the comeback in the fourth quarter, outscoring the Panthers 19-13 to secure the 47-43 victory.
Statistics (Unofficial)
Faith Jones led the Trojans with 14 points, with an incredible 13 coming in the second half. She scored five in the third quarter before exploding for eight in the fourth, including two three-pointers. Jones also grabbed five rebounds.
Emma Metcalf provided a huge spark with nine points, all coming in the second half, including seven crucial fourth-quarter points. She added seven rebounds and was a menace on the defensive end with four steals in an all-around performance.
Maddy Martin contributed seven points and five rebounds, showing aggression throughout as she attacked the basket trying to mount the comeback with key drives. Lauren Martin and Elyse Setterstrom each added four points.
Off the bench, Vanessa Kessel returned to action after dealing with illness and made an immediate impact with six points. Lenora Felt chipped in three points.
Coach’s Perspective
Fairfield head coach Brian Witzenburg was thrilled with his team’s resilience and second-half adjustments.
On the return of Vanessa Kessel:
“Being able to get her back in the lineup is big for us—another person to handle the ball and add to our rotation!”
On the team’s mental toughness and second-half turnaround:
“It was great to see us have a good second half. Coming out at halftime, you get punched in the face there in the first half, and things don’t exactly go your way, you got to stay composed and make sure that you’re communicating and stay as a team, and we did that. We had that chat at halftime. We came out and had the best third quarter of the year, and then followed it with the best fourth quarter of the year. So that was great to see from the girls all night long.”
On the improved ball movement that unlocked the offense:
“Our ball movement got so much better there. In the first half, we were rushing that shot, we were just kind of taking the first shot we had instead of letting that ball movement happen, and getting a touch inside the post and really moving that ball, making the defense work a little bit more and then we’re able to swing it and she (Jones) had open shots and great shots and knocking those down late in the game.”
Looking ahead to Monday’s home game against Van Buren County:
“They’re coming into town and we’re excited about that. We haven’t won in a little while on our court and it would be nice to get a streak going. We haven’t had a streak for a while, a couple years, so we just have to keep building and keep working together.”
Building Momentum
The victory improved Fairfield to 2-8 overall and, most importantly, gave them their first conference win of the season at 1-4. Mount Pleasant slipped to 2-8 overall and 0-5 in conference play.
The comeback victory represents a potential turning point for the Trojans, who demonstrated the ability to overcome adversity and execute when it mattered most. The second-half performance—outscoring Mount Pleasant 34-17 over the final 16 minutes—showed what this team is capable of when they play with composure and trust in their offensive system.
Looking Ahead
Fairfield will return to action on Monday, January 12th, hosting the 8-3 Warriors of Van Buren County for their first home game of 2026. The Trojans will look to build on their momentum and secure their first home victory in some time as they continue their conference schedule.
