The Effingham Lady Hearts finished first in their pool play Thursday afternoon, posting a 60-22 victory over Danville.
Effingham also got a 68-34 win over Champaign Central Thursday morning to win Pool D in the Coles County Holiday Tournament.
Averie Wolfe and Alyssa Martin combined to score 13 first-quarter points, helping the Lady Hearts break out to a 20-5 lead after the first eight minutes.
That same pair then combined to tally 14 more points in the second period, as EHS broke the game open, taking a commanding 40-12 advantage to the locker room at halftime.
Wolfe and Martin both finished with 14 points.
The Lady Hearts, now 12-3 for the season, will return to action at 1 p.m. Friday at Charleston High School. They will face the winner of Pool C, which was either Jacksonville or Sullivan.
The winner of that game will play for the tournament championship at 6 p.m. Friday at Mattoon High School. That will be against either Mattoon or Galesburg. The loser of Friday’s 1 p.m. contest will play for third place at 6 p.m. Friday at Charleston High School.
The Effingham Lady Hearts placed four players in double figures Thursday morning, en route to a 68-34 thumping of Champaign Central in an opening-round game of the Coles County Holiday Tournament.
Alyssa Martin, Bria Beals, Sidney Donaldson and Bella Austin combined to score 51 points, helping the Lady Hearts notch their 11th win of the season and open the tournament in strong fashion. Their games was played at Charleston High School.
Effingham built an 18-10 lead after the opening eight minutes and were never challenged. It was 34-20 at halftime and 49-29 heading into the fourth quarter.
Martin led EHS with 17 points, while Beals scored 12 and both Donaldson and Austin added 11.
The Lady Hearts improved to 11-3 on the season. They were scheduled to play a second game Thursday afternoon against Danville. Effingham will also play two games Friday.
The St. Anthony Lady Bulldogs will be participating in the 43rd annual Mattoon Holiday Basketball Tournament.
The tournament is scheduled for Tuesday through Thursday, Dec. 27-29.
There are eight teams entered in this year’s event.
Mattoon, Richland County (Olney), Altamont and Mahomet-Seymour are in Pool A.
St. Anthony, Galesburg, Champaign Central and Sullivan are in Pool B.
Each team is guaranteed five games and all games will be played at Mattoon High School.
The full schedule is listed below:
Tuesday, Dec. 27
Game 1 – 8:30 a.m. – St. Anthony vs. Champaign Central
Game 2 – 10 a.m. – Mahomet-Seymour vs. Richland County
Game 3 – 11:30 a.m. – Mattoon vs. Altamont
Game 4 – 1 p.m. – Sullivan vs. Galesburg
Game 5 – 3 p.m. – Altamont vs. Mahomet-Seymour
Game 6 – 4:30 p.m. -- Galesburg vs. Champaign Central
Game 7 – 6 p.m. – Richland County vs. Mattoon
Game 8 – 7:30 p.m. – St. Anthony vs. Sullivan
Wednesday, Dec. 28
Game 9 – 8:30 a.m. – Champaign Central vs. Sullivan
Game 10 – 10 a.m. – St. Anthony vs. Galesburg
Game 11 – 11:30 a.m. – Richland County vs. Altamont
Game 12 – 1 p.m. – Mattoon vs. Mahomet-Seymour
Game 13 – 4 p.m. – 3rd Place Pool A vs. 4th Place Pool B
Game 14 – 5:30 p.m. – 4th Place Pool A vs. 3rd Place Pool B
Game 14 – 5:30 p.m. – 4th Place Pool A vs. 3rd Place Pool B
Game 15 – 7 p.m. – 1st Place Pool A vs. 2nd Place Pool B
Game 16 – 8:30 p.m. – 2nd Place Pool A vs. 1st Place Pool B
Thursday, Dec. 29
Game 17 – 3 p.m. – Loser Game 13 vs. Loser Game 14
Game 18 – 4:30 p.m. – Winner Game 13 vs. Winner Game 14
Game 19 – Loser Game 15 vs. Loser Game 16
Game 20 – Winner Game 15 vs. Winner Game 16
The 10th annual Effingham-Teutopolis Christmas Classic should be a great one.
The field includes 16 quality teams that should provide plenty of competitive games over three days.
This year’s tournament will be played Thursday, Friday and Saturday, Dec. 28-30. Games will be played in Effingham and Teutopolis.
The full schedule is listed below:
Thursday, Dec. 28
At Teutopolis
Game 1 – 3 p.m. – Highland vs. Newton
Game 3 – 4:30 p.m. – Belvidere vs. Lincoln Way East
Game 5 – 6 p.m. – Charleston vs. Dixon
Game 7 – 7:30 p.m. – Pleasant Plains vs. Teutopolis
At Effingham
Game 2 – 3 p.m. – Lutheran North vs. Seneca
Game 4 – 4:30 p.m. – Chicago Brooks vs. Oak Lawn
Game 6 – 6 p.m. – Mattoon vs. St. Anthony
Game 8 – 7:30 p.m. – Champaign Centennial vs. Effingham
By Steve Raymond
ET Sports Report
Jeff Schafer expected a low-scoring game and he was right.
Unfortunately, the proverbial “lid” was on the basket in the second half for his Effingham girls basketball team. The Lady Hearts made just 3-of-17 attempts in the final 16 minutes, scored only eight total points and that proved decisive.
Highland was able to erase a six-point halftime deficit and came back to post a 38-34 win Thursday night at EHS.
Despite the shooting woes, the Lady Hearts were right there at the end and had a chance to either tie or win the game.
After Highland’s Abby Schultz missed a pair of foul shots, Saige Althoff hit a short jumper to get the Lady Hearts within two, 36-34, with 40 seconds remaining. Effingham then forced a turnover 11 seconds later. Coach Schafer called a timeout to set up a final play.
“We wanted to drive the ball to the basket,” he explained. “If the defense came to help, we could skip a pass to the corner.”
That’s exactly what happened and it left Bria Beals with a good look from behind the arc. Her shot looked good all the way, but it rimmed out. Schultz grabbed the rebound, was fouled, and this time, converted both free throws to secure the win.
“Bria’s shot looked so good,” Schafer said. “The girls ran the play and we got a good shot. I was pleased with that.”
Page 21 of 74
