Lake Forest Edges Out Illinois Wesleyan in Dramatic Fashion
Baich posts 19 points, nine rebounds, six steals, and three blocks

Nicole Baich recorded career-highs in points, rebounds, steals, and blcoked shots.

Sophomore center Nicole Baich (Westchester, IL/Nazareth Academy) led the home team with 19 points, nine rebounds, six steals, and three blocked shots. She shot 8-for-11 from the field and 3-for-4 from the free throw line. Senior guard Devon Liebl (Brookfield, WI/Milwaukee Pius XI) was the only other Forester in double figures with 11 points. She shot 3-for-6 from three-point range and added five rebounds and three steals.

Both teams finished the game 22-of-58 (37.9%) from the field. The Titans knocked down six three-point field goals in 19 attempts and shot 9-for-12 from the foul line. Lake Forest made just four of 16 long-range efforts and 12 of 22 attempts from the charity stripe. Wesleyan out-rebounded the Foresters 40-38 but committed two more turnovers (27-25).

The game was tied 4-4 and 7-7 before a 13-4 run by the Titans gave the visitors a nine-point lead with 12 minutes to play in the opening period. A Wesleyan three-pointer extended the margin to 10 points (25-15) with seven-and-a-half minutes remaining in the half. A Liebl three-pointer with two minutes to go completed a 12-2 Forester run and tied the game at 27. The contest was deadlocked again at 30 before the guests scored the final four points before halftime.

Wesleyan also scored the first five points after intermission to take a 39-30 lead. After seeing the difference drop to five, the Titans scored six straight to take a 45-34 advantage, their largest lead of the game. Once again the Foresters chipped away at the deficit and cut it to three (50-47) with 6:58 left on the clock. A pair of free throws by junior guard Lizzy Bauer (Madison, WI/Madison West) with 4:05 to play trimmed the margin to a single point (55-54) and two more by sophomore guard Sarah Holsen (Oconomowoc, WI/Oconomowoc) just 38 seconds later gave the home team its first lead since owning a 7-5 edge early in the first half. Bauer and Holsen finished the game with nine and eight points, respectively. After two free throws and a basket by the Titans, a layup by junior forward Andrea Durante (Bloomingdale, IL/Lake Park) pulled Lake Forest back to within one (59-58) with 2:08 left. After a pair of scoreless possessions for both teams, Durante intercepted a pass with less than 15 seconds on the clock and fed Holsen for the game-winning layup with nine seconds left. Baich blocked a shot at the buzzer to preserve the victory.

The Foresters will play a pair of road games this weekend (November 26-27). The team will travel to UW-Whitewater on Saturday and Edgewood College on Sunday. Both games begin at 2:00 p.m.

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